Full Report
ECONOMIC BENEFITS
OF COASTAL MARINAS
UK and Channel Islands
Sponsored by:
With thanks to:
FOREWORD
By Rob Stevens, Chief Executive, British Marine Federation
Our marinas in the UK provide a focus for boating activity and a safe environment from which
to plan adventures afloat with friends or family, explore our coastline or take part in the
excitement of racing.
There are a huge variety of facilities on offer and many sites are important centres of employment, with some playing a
key role in regeneration and being visitor attractions in their own right.
This report brings to life this variety, by drawing on the operating experience of nine case study marinas situated around
the UK coastline, including the Channel Islands. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all those who have made
this groundbreaking piece of work possible, devoting valuable time to ensure the economic benefits of this sector are
more fully understood.
Developing that understanding has been central to the British Marine Federation’s strategy, which includes themes on
encouraging access to the water and keeping boating affordable. The report demonstrates that recent developments
have all been relatively small scale in nature and are often complicated in spite of the clear cut benefits they offer and
the sound approach taken to mitigating environmental impacts by the sector.
Government is looking carefully at our Planning System, both in the terrestrial and coastal zone and this presents an
opportunity to streamline the consents process. This report is essential reading for all those involved in shaping policy,
setting out land use and economic strategies and making decisions about development plans around our coastline.
From Our Partners
Roger Bright, Chief Executive, The Crown Estate
As the major tidal landowner in the UK, The Crown Estate is delighted to have supported the
production of this report into the economic benefits of marinas.
The Crown Estate has two main objectives: to maintain and enhance the value and quality of the estate through good
management and benefit the taxpayer by paying all the surplus revenue generated from our assets to the Treasury.
Marinas play an important part in helping us to realise these objectives, providing £1.8 million a year in revenue and
15% of our total income from coastal activities. But we see our role as more than just a landowner. We are taking an
increasingly active interest in the economic opportunities that marinas and other coastal developments can provide as
we work with the marina sector to seek new ways of investing in, and supporting coastal communities. This report will
help inform this activity and will also be an important tool for decision makers involved in the planning and development
of future coastal strategies.
The Crown Estate's financial support for the preparation of this report has come via our Marine Stewardship
programme. This programme underpins our belief in the importance of integrated coastal management and the
considerable benefits that sustainable developments can bring to businesses, communities and visitors in our coastal
areas. And it derives directly from The Crown Estate's core values of commercialism, integrity and stewardship which
inform all that we do.
Deputy Alan Maclean, Assistant Minister for Economic
Development, States of Jersey
As the operators of three Five Gold Anchor marinas, the States of Jersey are both encouraged and excited by this
important study which highlights the wide variety of opportunities for economic growth in our marine leisure industry.
This segment of the market is very diverse and our customers include owners of yachts and motorboats with varying
needs and requirements. Some are local, others are non-residents who keep their boats moored in Jersey and others are
visitors from Europe, the UK and the other Channel Islands.
Meeting the needs of all of our customers all of the time is therefore a very real challenge. The growth of our successful
tourism and finance industries has shown that Jersey is able to meet such a challenge and we look forward to working
with our partners in the marine trade and the British Marine Federation to realise the enormous potential for our marine
leisure industry identified in this report.
We already have a great base from which to further develop marine leisure and tourism thanks to a number of key
assets that include first class marina facilities, low cost marine fuels, very competitive berthing rates, excellent hoist and
storage facilities, a world leading offshore finance centre, and attractive hotels and restaurants.
Jersey Harbours, Jersey Tourism and our Economic Development Department are already actively working together to
ensure that we meet the requirement for additional marina berths and onshore services in this exciting phase in the
growth of our marine leisure industry. We look forward to showing you the results.
3
CONTENTS
4
FOREWORD
3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
7
DEFINITIONS
11
1
1.1
1.2
1.3
INTRODUCTION
This Report
Study Aims and Objectives
Report Structure
12
12
12
12
2
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.3.1
2.3.2
2.3.3
2.3.4
2.3.5
2.3.6
2.4
2.5
2.6
2.6.1
2.6.2
2.6.3
2.6.4
2.6.5
2.7
OVERVIEW OF UK MARINA SECTOR
The UK Leisure Marine Sector
The UK Coastal Marina Sector
Supply and Demand of Coastal Marina Berths in the UK
Existing Supply of Coastal Marina Berths in the UK
Introduction to Main Marina Operators
Regional Focus of the Main Marina Operators
Recent Marina Developments, Extensions and Refurbishments by Region
Future Marina Developments, Extensions and Refurbishments by Region
Local Impacts of Marina Developments
Demand for Marina Berths
Estimates of National and Regional Berthing Fees
Sector Trends and Barriers
Supply Restrictions and Constraints
Strong Demand
Ease of Travel and Growth of International Berth Supply
Increasing Boat Sizes
Increasing Quality of UK Marinas
Links Between Marinas and Regeneration
14
14
14
14
14
15
16
17
19
21
21
23
24
24
25
25
26
26
26
3
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
3.7
3.8
3.9
3.10
3.11
3.12
3.13
ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF MARINAS
Introduction
Business Numbers
Turnover
Trade Balance
Employment and Wages
Profitability
Taxes
Retail Market Estimates
Value Added
Summary Findings
Regional Estimates of Value Added for Coastal Marinas
Influence of Marinas on Marine Sub-Sectors
Tourism Impacts
28
28
30
30
30
31
31
31
31
32
32
32
33
33
5
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Study
The British Marine Federation (BMF) has identified the coastal marinas sector as an important contributor to
employment, regeneration and tourism. A steering group, including key partners from The Crown Estate, Jersey
Harbours and supported by the marina operators of The Yacht Harbour Association (TYHA), has been set up to raise the
profile of this successful sector.
4
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
4.8
4.9
4.10
4.11
4.12
CASE STUDIES
Introduction
Assumptions
Jersey Harbours Case Study
Mylor Yacht Harbour Case Study
East Cowes Marina Case Study
Port Hamble Marina Case Study
Port Solent Marina Case Study
Ramsgate Marina Case Study
Tollesbury Marina Case Study
Largs Yacht Haven Case Study
Conwy Quays Marina Case Study
Summary of Case Study Findings
35
35
35
36
40
44
48
51
55
58
62
65
68
5
5.1
5.2
5.2.1
5.2.2
5.2.3
5.2.4
5.2.5
5.2.6
5.2.7
5.3
5.4
5.5
5.6
CONCLUSIONS
Introduction
Economic Benefits of Coastal Marinas
Direct Impacts of Coastal Marinas
On-Site Businesses
Supply Chain and Employee Effects
Tourism and Leisure Impacts
Regeneration and Property Effects
Marine Sector Impacts
Overall Impacts
Industry Trends
Barriers to Development
Implications for Policy
Overall Conclusion
71
71
71
71
71
71
72
72
72
72
73
73
74
74
ANNEX 1: BIBLIOGRAPHY
75
This group commissioned GHK Consulting Ltd to undertake a study to assess and document the economic benefits of
coastal marinas in the UK and Channel Islands. The report presents a national assessment of the economic benefits of
coastal marinas and draws upon the findings of nine detailed case studies to provide examples of the variety of impacts
and contribution of each to its local economy.
The objectives of the study were to:
•
Provide a comprehensive overview of the coastal marina sector, identifying:
• Current supply and demand of berths (nationally and regionally)
• Recent and future marina developments and expansions
• Supply restrictions and constraints
• Sector trends
•
Evaluate the economic benefits of coastal marinas in terms of:
• Turnover, employment, wages, and profitability
• Estimates of national and regional Gross Value Added (GVA)
• Tourism impacts
•
Profile nine coastal marina case studies to consider:
• Direct impacts of marina operators and on-site businesses
• Indirect and induced effects
• Impacts on tourism and the wider economy
This executive summary presents some of the key findings, with in-depth data and analysis presented in the full report. It
is intended that the full report will be an essential read for all those involved in planning marinas and waterfront
developments, from both the public and private sector.
Overview of the Coastal Marinas Sector
There are at least 238 coastal marinas in the UK and Channel Islands, making the coastline of the UK accessible to the
boating public and providing some 49,000 marina berths. These berths are concentrated in the South East and South
West, although the East of England, Scotland, Wales and the Channel Islands also provide a significant share.
A new survey of TYHA coastal marina members suggests that the majority of coastal marinas have excess demand for
berths. This is true for all sizes of marina berths, and further information about how excess demand increases in relation
to berth size is provided in the full report.
Economic Benefits of Coastal Marinas
BMF statistics 05/06 show in terms of operating costs alone the UK coastal marina sector has a turnover of £113 million,
and directly employs 1,700 people. An analysis of the sector suggests that the added value of this core coastal marina
sector is £69 million. In addition, the associated marine and hospitality activities of marina operators are estimated to
support a further 600 local jobs and £7 million of value added.
On-Site Business Impacts: The most significant impact of coastal marinas is generated through on-site tenant
businesses, which can be marine related (e.g. chandlers, boat repair) or non-marine related (e.g. pubs and restaurants).
Berth-holders, boating visitors and leisure visitors spend money on goods and services provided by tenant businesses on
the marina site, which directly supports 11,800 jobs and generates £260 million of value added, based on the case study
findings.
Supply Chain Impacts: Coastal marinas, tenant businesses and their employees purchase goods and services from other
businesses. The case study marinas suggest that these indirect and induced effects support an additional 4,300 jobs and
£102 million of value added.
Tourism and Leisure Impacts: The coastal marina sector is closely related to the wider tourism and leisure industry by:
•
Providing infrastructure and services for people to access the water and participate in leisure boating activities;
•
Serving as visitor attractions in their own right, attracting boating and non-boating users, who spend money on-site
and in the wider local economy.
It is estimated that boating visitors to coastal marinas spend £214 million per annum, supporting an estimated 5,350
local tourism jobs.
6
7
Marine Industry Impacts: Coastal marinas also have an important influence on the marine sector as a whole, by
influencing the number of boats sold and kept in the UK, which determines output and employment among companies
involved in boatbuilding, distribution, maintenance and related services and supply chains.
Royal Harbour Marina is located in Ramsgate, Kent and is owned and operated
by Thanet District Council. A major development and upgrade of the Harbour took
place in 2000, adding 200 berths, improving the facilities and security, and
providing additional car parking. The local area suffers from deprivation and the
marina plays a key role in the regeneration of the town. The council’s strategy is to
use the marina as a strategic asset to attract high-value visitors, increasing local
demand and encouraging investment.
Overall Employment Impact: The analysis of nine case study marinas suggests that the overall impact of coastal
marinas is many times larger and every job in the core coastal marinas sector supports a further 12 jobs in the
local economy, through tenant businesses, suppliers and as a result of visitor and employee expenditures in the wider
economy. This would suggest that the coastal marinas sector supports around 22,000 jobs in local coastal economies
across the UK and Channel Islands.
Overall Gross Value Added (GVA) Impact: The overall impact of coastal marinas in terms of value added is
estimated to be seven times larger than that of the core coastal marinas sector. This suggests that the coastal
marinas sector supports around £500 million of GVA in the UK and Channel Islands (while extrapolating the case study
findings suggests this figure could be as high as £700 million).
Case Study Marinas
The nine case studies undertaken as part of the study are introduced below, with the overall benefits of each marina
presented in the main report.
Tollesbury Marina is located on the Blackwater Estuary, close to Tollesbury in
Essex. Despite initial opposition to the construction of the marina in 1970, local
residents are now supportive of the marina because of the key role it plays in the
local economy. The marina attracts affluent consumers and creates demand for
marine and non-marine goods and services. It has been instrumental in providing
demand for local engineering businesses established on an adjacent industrial
estate, which have grown considerably and expanded into other markets.
Jersey Harbours operates three marinas in St Helier Harbour, and has one of the
largest impacts of all the case study marinas. This is largely driven by the high
number of on site tenant businesses and the significant number of boating visitors.
However the marinas have an opportunity to generate even greater impact in line
with the increasing demand for Jersey as a destination for marine leisure tourism,
focusing particularly on associated financial, leisure, retail and marina services to
attract and accommodate even more boats and related businesses.
Mylor Yacht Harbour in Cornwall was recently redeveloped, increasing the
number of berths to meet the growing demand for marina berths, and increasing
shore storage capacity and boatyard facilities. This has stimulated marina activity
throughout the year and reduced the seasonality of employment and turnover. The
turnover of the site is now three times larger than before the redevelopment and
the marina has considerable excess demand, suggesting that there is potential for
further development.
Largs Yacht Haven is owned by the Yacht Havens Group and is located in a rural
area of the Clyde Estuary in Scotland. The marina has recently added 80 berths and
has plans to add another 50 to meet the continued strong growth in demand. The
marina has had a major impact on the local economy by creating jobs and adding
value for local businesses, and also by raising the image and profile of the area,
increasing the leisure offer for local residents and boating visitors, including
providing public access to the waterfront.
Conwy Quays Marina in North Wales is owned and operated by Quay Marinas.
The local council believe the marina has played a significant role in the
regeneration of Conwy through: the creation of high value jobs in specialist
marine and engineering skills; helping to raise the image and attractiveness of the
local area; stimulating the confidence of local businesses; and encouraging other
businesses to raise the quality of the local retail and leisure offer to the visitors that
the marina attracts.
Overall Case Study Findings
East Cowes Marina was purchased by Dean & Reddyhoff in 1998 and has since
undergone a significant redevelopment, reconfiguring the marina layout, adding
berths, building a new marina office, units for tenant businesses, a pub, and a
toilet/shower block. The marina is a popular destination for visiting boats and has
successfully increased visitor numbers, thereby generating a significant impact
through visitor expenditures in the local economy. The marina is playing a key role
in facilitating and promoting the regeneration of East Cowes.
Port Hamble Marina is a MDL marina and is popular amongst yacht racing
enthusiasts. The marina has been redeveloped to provide new accommodation for
the marina and tenant businesses and has plans to introduce a pub/restaurant to
improve the leisure offer to visitors. Port Hamble Marina has the largest impact of all
case study marinas in terms of visitor expenditures in the local economy and attracts
a significant number of boating visitors due to the high quality of the marina
services, the neighbouring boatyard and the leisure facilities in Hamble village.
Port Solent Marina is operated by Premier Marinas and is a destination marina,
providing a wide range of leisure services, marine services, residential property, and
employment space. The marina has a significant overall impact driven by: a large
number of high value tenants including the headquarters of Sunsail and the largest
chandlery in the UK; a diverse range of income streams including a large shore
storage capacity; and an extensive visitor offer provided by the Boardwalk Centre
which comprises a cinema, health club and a wide range of restaurants, bars and
retailers.
8
The overall impacts (including direct, indirect and induced effects) of each of the nine case study marinas on their
respective local economies are provided in Section 4. The case study marinas each support local employment of between
28 – 498 FTE jobs and value added of between £1 million and £17.4 million per annum. It is anticipated that the
information contained in the case studies, which present a wide range of marinas, with varying portfolios, will be
invaluable to those considering the economic potential of new marina developments.
Trends and Development Issues
The coastal marinas sector is benefiting from continued strong growth in demand for boats and marina berths, and
increasingly for larger boat sizes and motor boats, which is being driven by:
•
An increasingly ageing and affluent population bringing new entrants to the market.
•
The increasingly affordable cost of new and used boats.
•
An increasing demand for the convenience of marina berths, rather than moorings, to maximise boating time.
•
The increasing quality of coastal marinas, highlighted by the growing number with TYHA Gold Anchor Award
accreditation.
The excess demand and lack of available berths in many areas, particularly in the south, is forcing people to berth their
boat further from home, elsewhere in the country and overseas. This trend is being facilitated by cheaper flights to a
wider range of national and international destinations, as well as growth in the supply of marina berths in Europe
relative to the UK. However, this has economic implications for local economies and diverts expenditures and economic
impacts to other regions and countries; whilst increasing air travel has implications for the environment.
The development of new, and expansion or maintenance of existing, coastal marinas is facing an increasing number of
barriers, constraints and issues, which are restricting the potential supply of marina berths in the UK. These constraints
include:
•
More stringent environmental and planning restrictions, which are placing greater resource requirements on marinas,
restricting growth and productivity.
•
Physical space limitations preventing expansion of the marina on land or water.
9
•
The cost of infrastructure to create a marina basin, which can be prohibitive without incorporating other forms of
value creation in the development.
•
Increased costs of dredging and problems securing dredging licences.
•
Increased health and safety legislation, which can be restrictive for marinas and boatyards.
DEFINITIONS
The following provides a list of definitions used in this report:
Marina: A facility for the berthing of pleasure craft providing direct walkway access to each boat, an adequate depth
of water at all times, car parking, toilet facilities, services and other amenities.
Implications for Policy
These barriers and constraints and the related economic benefits raise a number of issues and potential
recommendations for policy makers, such as the need to:
Berth: The area of water that has been allocated to the customer alongside a
pontoon or finger to moor his/her boat.1
•
Recognise the significant economic contribution of coastal marinas and associated businesses to tourism and marine
sectors and the wider local economy and the potential role they can play in local regeneration.
Finger: A fixed or floating projection from a main walkway upon which craft can
be moored.1
•
Consider the impacts on coastal marinas, associated businesses and the local economy when introducing new
policies and reduce unnecessary bureaucracy relating to planning and environmental legislation and applications.
Pontoon: A floating structure to provide landing or mooring facilities.1
•
Assess the scale of local demand for marina berths and identify appropriate sites for development and expansion.
•
Facilitate the development and expansion of coastal marinas and associated businesses where this is compatible with
sustainable development objectives.
Mooring: One or more secured anchors with buoyed riding chain or similar to
which craft or pontoons may be secured.1 See picture below.
Conclusions
Promoting a widespread understanding of the value of marina developments to local economies and communities has
been central to the British Marine Federation’s strategy, which includes themes on encouraging access to the water and
keeping boating affordable.
The difficulty in securing new development opportunities is highlighted by the report, which lists recent small scale
developments that have been progressed over the last 5 years and highlights that new large scale prospects are few and
far between, the Olympic Marina being a notable exception. We recommend this report as essential reading to planners
and decision makers, as well as those considering investing in the marina sector within the UK.
Dry-stack Boat Storage: Dry-stack Boat Storage is the vertical storage of boats in rack systems for in-and-out
launching and retrieval of boats as well as winter storage. Dry stack racks can be located either outside or inside and are
usually located on or near a waterfront, often at a marina or boatyard. Dry stack storage facilities can stack boats from
two to six levels high. Boats are loaded and unloaded from the racks using forklifts. Offwater dry-stack facilities are
common in areas with a large number of trailerable boats and limited and costly waterfront property. In this case, boats
are unloaded from the stacks and loaded on trailers for transport. Sometimes in dry-stacks, the racks are owned by
individuals who hold title to their racks.2
Economic Definitions:
Aftermarket: The market for parts, supplies and accessories for boats after their purchase.
Economic Benefits: The total contribution of coastal marinas to the national and regional economy.
Economic Impact: Measures the marginal increase or decrease in this contribution from a change in customer
spending, or other changes in the value chain such as a change in the use of imports.
GDP: Gross Domestic Product, defined as the sum of all incomes earned by the production of goods and services on UK
economic territory, wherever the earner of the income may reside.
GVA: Gross Value Added, represents the total value generated by all producer units in a region or country.
Expenditure Approach: Estimates the final demand for all goods and services, from households, government and
government consumption, adjusted for net exports (exports minus imports).
Income Approach: Measures the total income received from factors of production, including labour compensation (i.e.
wages), profits and rents.
Output Approach: Estimates the total value of final goods and services and services produced, i.e. the sum of value
added measured by the difference between the total value of goods and services produced by the industry minus the
costs of purchases of intermediate goods and services.
1 The Yacht Harbour Association Ltd (2007) A Code of Practice for the Design, Construction and Operation of Coastal and Inland Marinas and Yacht Harbours
10
2 International Council of Marine Industry Associations (ICOMIA) - http://www.icomia.com/technical-info/introduction.asp (2007) Recreational Boating Definitions – revised May 2007
11
1
INTRODUCTION
1.1
This Report
Figure 1.1: Mylor Yacht Harbour
GHK Consulting Ltd (GHK) was commissioned by the British Marine Federation (BMF) to undertake a study of
the economic benefits of coastal marinas in the UK. The Crown Estate and Jersey Harbours were partners in
the study and formed part of the steering group, alongside representatives of BMF and The Yacht Harbour
Association (TYHA) and a number of other key stakeholders from the coastal marinas sector.
This report presents evidence of the current definition, scale and economic significance of the UK coastal
marina sector and its interactions with other marina leisure sub-sectors and the tourism industry and uses case
studies to demonstrate the economic benefits, and barriers to the development, of coastal marinas at the local
level.
1.2
Study Aims and Objectives
The overall aim of the study was to assess and document the economic significance and impact of coastal
marinas in the UK. More specifically, the study aimed to:
•
Provide case studies from selected coastal marinas to build a comprehensive case detailing the value of
marina developments in the UK, with robust economic analysis, to provide convincing material that will be
used to inform key decision makers in the UK and positively influence planning decisions.
•
Provide a definitive description of the scale of the coastal marinas sector within the UK, highlighting the
provision of marina berths as a focus for business and tourism activities and as a key driver for domestic
boat sales and the associated production, plus supply chain and distribution activities.
•
Review recent developments and their role and impact on local communities.
•
Consider the tourism benefits of coastal marinas as visitor attractions in their own right.
•
Provide an overview of key operators and the regional supply and demand of coastal marinas.
•
Consider development potential around the UK coastline to give an indication of relevant economic
information required to meet planning requirements at a local level and barriers to growth.
The study therefore includes both a national assessment of the supply and demand for marinas and their
economic significance and impacts, and a series of more detailed case studies supplementing existing
information with further primary research at the local level.
1.3
Report Structure
The remainder of this report is structured as follows:
12
•
Section 2 provides an overview of the UK and Channel Islands coastal marina sector, profiling the main
marina operators and providing a national and regional analysis of the supply and demand for coastal
marina berths. It also discusses some of the key industry trends and issues;
•
Section 3 introduces the economic benefits of marinas at a national level, providing a national overview
presenting data on turnover, value added, employment, tax, purchases and economic linkages, as well as
addressing wider tourism and regeneration effects;
•
Section 4 provides summaries of the findings of each of the nine case study marinas;
•
Section 5 presents the conclusions and recommendations of the study;
•
Annex 1 provides a bibliography and a list of consultees.
13
2
OVERVIEW OF UK MARINA SECTOR
2.1
The UK Leisure Marine Sector
Table 2.1: National and Regional Supply of Coastal Marina Berths
The BMF estimates that the UK leisure and small commercial marine industry generated a total annual turnover
of £2.8 billion in 2005/6. Prior to this period, the industry experienced significant growth of 8% per annum
since 1997. The sector provides work for more than 35,000 full time equivalent (FTE) employees and
contributes more than £1 billion of value added to the UK economy. The South East and South West regions
dominate the sector and together account for 60% of total UK revenues and 53% of total employment.3
The UK leisure marine sector is dominated by the manufacture of boats, engines and boating equipment, which
accounts for 49% of total turnover and total employment. The other major sub-sectors include distribution,
retail and brokerage, charter and schools, and marinas, moorings and boatyard services. The marinas, moorings
and boatyard services sub-sector accounts for 11% of total turnover and 15% of total employment.
The BMF also estimates that tourism spend relating to the UK leisure boating sector totals up to £2.2 billion,
which supports an additional 63,000 FTE jobs.
2.2
Source: GHK estimates, based on data sources listed in 2.3.1
The UK Coastal Marina Sector
The data in Table 2.1 suggest that there are at least 238 coastal marinas in the UK, providing some 49,000
marina berths, with the average marina comprising some 204 berths. The regional figures illustrate the high
concentration of marina berths in the South West and particularly the South East region, which accounts for
more than one in three coastal marinas berths in the UK. The other most significant regions are the East of
England, followed by Scotland, Wales and the Channel Islands.
The UK coastal marina sector in terms of operating costs alone is estimated to employ 1,673 FTE staff and has a
turnover of £113 million (BMF 05/06). These figures represent core marina activity and excludes activities
relating to boatyard facilities, fuelling, hospitality. The wider economic significance is many times this figure and
is presented in Sections 3 and 5.2. The coastal marina sector is closely related to retail, brokerage, boat repair,
charter and schools sub-sectors, as many of these operations are clustered on marina sites. In fact, only a small
number of marina owners operate exclusively in a core marina function. Marinas are also economically linked
to tourism, hospitality and retail in the surrounding area.
Marinas act as a key driver for domestic boat sales and the associated production, supply chain and distribution
activities through the provision of marina berths. An insufficient number or inadequate quality of berths will
impact on consumer demand for boats. A potential purchaser will only buy a boat if there is an acceptable
place to berth or store it.
2.3
Supply and Demand of Coastal Marina Berths in the UK
2.3.1
Existing Supply of Coastal Marina Berths in the UK
The study included a regional analysis of the supply and demand of coastal marina berths, based on the UK
government office regions. This analysis used a number of data sources, including:
The Channel Islands has by far the largest average marina size (approximately twice the UK average), while the
largest marinas on the mainland are in Wales (average 271 berths) and the North East (251 berths). The South
East and East of England are the only other regions with an average number of berths per marina greater than
the national average. Marinas in Northern Ireland, Scotland, London and the Isle of Man are the smallest on
average.
2.3.2
Introduction to Main Marina Operators
This section introduces the main marina operators in the UK and provides a brief overview of each business and
its marina interests.
Associated British Ports (ABP)
•
Marinas and Moorings Audit 2003/04, published by BMF,
•
BMF database of member and non-member marinas,
•
Marina Guide 2006, published by the Royal Yachting Association (RYA),
•
Marina and Services Guide 2007, published by Reeds,
ABP is primarily a ports business, providing port facilities and services to shippers and cargo owners, while
offering more specialist services via ABP Connect, a division which provides warehousing, distribution,
transportation and logistics support and services. ABP also owns and operates four coastal marinas alongside
port operations in Ipswich, Lowestoft, Southampton and Fleetwood. The company therefore has two marinas
in the East of England (Ipswich Haven Marina and Lowestoft Haven Marina), Southampton Town Quay Marina
in the South East, and Fleetwood Harbour Village Marina in the North West, which combine to provide 825
marina berths.
•
A survey of The Yacht Harbour Association (TYHA) members, specifically undertaken to inform this study,
Dean & Reddyhoff Ltd
•
The TYHA/BMF Directory of Members: fourth edition,
•
Interviews with industry stakeholders and the case study marinas included in this study,
Dean & Reddyhoff owns and operates three large marinas in the south of England, providing approximately
1,300 berths. Two of these are in the South East (Haslar Marina in Gosport and East Cowes Marina on the Isle
of Wight) and one in the South West (Weymouth Marina).
•
Websites of individual marinas.
These sources contain information relating to the supply of marina berths at individual coastal marinas in the
UK. This information has been used to build a database of marina berths, which provides a best estimate of
the number of coastal marinas and berths in the UK. This data has been grouped to provide a regional
breakdown, based on RDA regions, and the findings are presented in Table 2.1.
Holt Leisure Park Ltd
Holt Leisure Park Ltd was established in the early 1960s and remains a family-owned and run group. The
primary business of the group is owning and operating marinas and caravan parks, which include three coastal
marinas in Scotland (Kip Marina, Craobh Marina and Fairlie Quay Marina), with a combined total of 850 berths.
The group believes it has a unique selling point by being a family business in a market dominated by large
commercial groups, which it considers enables it to deliver a more personal and tailored service to boaters.
Marina Developments Ltd (MDL)
MDL was established in the 1970s and has become the largest marina group in Europe. MDL currently owns
and operates 19 major marinas and boatyards, employing more than 240 people, and providing premises for
more than 500 marine businesses (chandleries, restaurants, boat service industries, etc.). Three of the marinas
are inland marinas located on the Thames, but the remaining 16 marinas all have a coastal location, providing
more than 4,700 coastal marina berths:
3 British Marine Federation (2005/06) UK Leisure and Small Commercial Marine Industry: Key Performance Indicators
14
15
•
Ten are located in the South East (Ocean Village Marina, Hamble Point Marina, Hythe Marina Village, Port
Hamble Marina, Shamrock Quay Marina, Saxon Wharf, Mercury Yacht Harbour, Northney Marina, Chatham
Maritime Marina, Sparkes Marina)
•
Five are located in the South West (Cobbs Quay Marina, Queen Anne’s Battery, Brixham Marina, Torquay
Marina, Dartside Quay)
•
One is located in the East of England (Woolverstone Marina)
Table 2.2: Regional Supply of Coastal Marina Berths Amongst the Main Operators
Premier Marinas Ltd
Premier Marinas Ltd has been operating since the late 1980s. Its core business is the ownership, management
and development of marinas and adjoining real estate. Premier Marinas owns and manages eight of the most
prestigious coastal marinas in the UK, including Falmouth Marina in the South West and Brighton, Chichester,
Port Solent, Southsea, Gosport, Sovereign Harbour and Swanwick Marinas in the South East. The company has
146 employees. These provide a combined total of approximately 5,300 berths, excluding residential berths.
Premier Marinas prides itself on offering exceptional facilities and berthing conditions.
The main operators of coastal marinas in the UK currently manage more than 21,000 marina berths in the UK,
more than 43% of which are located in the South East region. The next most significant regions are the South
West and the Channel Islands, followed by Scotland and Wales. None of the main operators manage coastal
marinas in London, the East Midlands or Yorkshire and Humberside regions.
Quay Marinas
In July 2004, Crest Nicholson Marinas Ltd changed its name to Quay Marinas following a management buy-out
from Crest Nicholson Plc. Quay Marinas operates five marinas across the UK and also provides consultancy
services to regeneration agencies and developers involved in marina related projects. Quay Marinas is unusual in
being a major marina operator which does not operate a marina in the largest region, the South East. Their five
marinas include one in Northern Ireland (Bangor Marina), two in Wales (Conwy Quays and Penarth Quays
marinas), one in the North East (Royal Quays Marina) and one in the South West (Portishead Quays Marina).
These provide a total of approximately 2,000 berths. Quay Marinas has also been directly involved in the
development of a number of marina sites across the UK and have provided consultancy services on marina
development projects, including developing marinas to enhance and add value to large scale mixed-use projects.
States of Jersey and Guernsey
Jersey Harbours is responsible for operating the three main marinas on Jersey: St Helier Marina; La Collette
Yacht Basin; and Elizabeth Marina, providing a total of more than 1,000 berths. Jersey Harbours also holds
responsibility for managing the port estate, the coastguard and vessel navigation information service, the
passenger port and terminal, and the operation and management of the commercial port of St Helier. Some
98% of the goods used or consumed in Jersey arrive through the port. Guernsey Harbours operates three
marinas (Queen Elizabeth II Marina, Victoria Marina and Albert Marina) in St. Peter Port and the more recent
marina development in St. Sampson’s Harbour, which opened in 2005. This provides approximately 2,000
berths, so that the overall total for the Channel Islands is in excess of 3,000.
Yacht Havens Ltd
2.3.3
16
Premier Marinas, MDL, Yacht Havens and the States of Jersey and Guernsey are the four largest operators in
terms of marina berths. The majority of the main operators focus their activities on two or three regions,
typically including the South East and South West. The States of Jersey and Guernsey are clearly focused on the
Channel Islands, while Holt Leisure Park Ltd operates solely in Scotland. The marina activities of Quay Marinas
and Yacht Havens Ltd are spread across the widest geographical area (operating across four and five different
regions respectively). These two operators differ from most of the other operators by having a significant focus
on regions in the north, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
2.3.4
Recent Marina Developments, Extensions and Refurbishments by Region
There have been a number of recent marina developments, extensions and refurbishments in the UK and Channel
Islands, though in many cases securing planning permission took several years. This section provides a summary
of some of these developments within each region, while the following section summarises a list of proposed
future developments, extensions and refurbishments. The concentration of examples for the South West, South
East, Eastern, Wales and Scotland regions illustrates the focus of recent and future activity in these areas.
There were a number of significant marina developments on the south coast in the 1980s and 1990s, with the
construction of Port Solent, Southsea and Haslar Marinas. However since 2000, the only developments on the
south coast have been the much smaller marinas at Gunwharf Quays and Royal Clarence Yard in Gosport, both
of which involved lengthy negotiations with the relevant regulatory bodies.
Channel Islands
•
Yacht Havens Ltd was established in 1972 with the development of Lymington Yacht Haven in the South East.
Yacht Havens has grown significantly since 1972 and now operates seven coastal marinas in the UK, providing a
total of more than 3,000 berths. In addition to the site at Lymington, these comprise:
St Sampson’s Marina on Guernsey opened in April 2005. The 350 berth marina development cost in excess
of £4 million.
•
Jersey Harbours have recently added 8 berths to St Helier Marina.
•
Plymouth Yacht Haven in the South West
South West
•
Fambridge Yacht Haven in the East of England
•
Cobbs Quay Marina has installed a new dry stack system, with capacity for an equivalent of 100 berths.
•
Largs Yacht Haven and Troon Yacht Haven in Scotland
•
Brixham Marina has reconfigured its pontoons to add an additional 10 berths.
•
Neyland Yacht Haven and Hafan Pwllheli in Wales.
•
Portishead Quays Marina has added approximately 30 berths.
Yacht Havens also provides dry berthing storage at sites in Lymington and Plymouth.
•
Queen Anne’s Battery in Plymouth has added 24 berths by reconfiguring the pontoon layout.
Regional Focus of the Main Marina Operators
•
Plymouth Yacht Haven added 18 berths in 2003/04 at a cost of £150,000.
The eight main marina operators collectively manage 53 different coastal marinas in the UK. The regional
location of these operations is presented in Table 2.2.
South East
•
Brighton Marina has invested more than £6 million in a capital refurbishment programme to make
improvements to pontoon services, security, decking, marina equipment and staffing.
•
Dover Marina added 14 finger berths of 12 metres to its Granville dock in 2005. Then in 2006, the inner
dock capacity was increased by 5 finger berths of 13.5 metres and 50 metres of alongside berthing.
•
Port Solent Marina has expanded two berths from 12 to 15 metres in June 2007 to increase its capacity for
larger boats.
•
Universal Marina renewed and reconfigured its pontoon layout in 2005, slightly reducing the number of
marina berths.
17
•
Hamble Point Marina has installed a new dry stack system with capacity for 120 berths.
•
Eastlands Boatyard was also redeveloped in 2005/06, renewing and reconfiguring its pontoon layout and
finger berths.
2.3.5 Future Marina Developments, Extensions and Refurbishments by Region
Channel Islands
•
East
•
Lowestoft Haven Marina opened in 2004 and has recently been awarded five gold anchors by TYHA. The
marina development cost £1 million and comprises 140 berths, a 70-tonne boat hoist, restaurant, yacht
brokerage, marine-repair workshop, and a gas and fuel supplier.
South West
•
Dean & Reddyhoff is currently developing a new 600-berth marina in Portland in the South West, which it
expects to open in 2008. The site is close to its marina in Weymouth and will be the base for the sailing
events of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The plans include a bar and restaurant, fuel berth,
travel hoist, chandlery, yacht brokerage and marine engineers.
•
MDL has plans to develop Penlee Marina, at Penlee Quarry, located to the south of Newlyn in Cornwall.
The £57 million project will provide full tidal access to 195 berths, a small hotel, a 150-berth dry stack
facility, residential property and commercial retail space. The marina design will have an environmental
focus, for example harnessing and utilising energy from the sea, while MDL is working closely with the local
authority (Penwith District Council) to ensure the proposed developments complement other local projects
at Penzance, Newlyn and the Isles of Scilly, and contribute towards the aim of developing a marina-related
industry in Mounts Bay.
•
Yacht Haven Quay at Plymouth is about to start the construction of the UK's first purpose built indoor dry
stack building, able to store over 200 boats on racks 4 storeys high in a fully enclosed building.
•
Plymouth Yacht Haven is planning to invest between £1.5 and £2 million in 2007/08 to build a new
bar/restaurant, a new two-storey chandlery and offices, and to tarmac two large car parks.
•
Brixham Marina is currently exploring the potential for expansion as part of the Brixham Regeneration
Programme.
•
Portishead Quays Marina has long term plans for a staged expansion from the existing 250 berths up to
approximately 400 berths.
Wales
•
Falmouth Marina would like to add 34 new berths if consent for a capital dredge can be secured.
•
Burry Port Marina in West Wales opened in 2005 following a £3.5 million investment programme. The 255
berth marina shows a marked increase in capacity over the 50 boats that could be accommodated
previously on chain moorings.
•
Work has also begun on a separate project in Falmouth to develop a new deep water marina within
Falmouth Docks with up to 600 berths. Part of the new marina is specifically designed to cater for superyachts of up to 100 metres in length.
•
Holyhead Marina has made a significant investment over the last three years to add approximately 100
berths, including the addition of a new pier in 2006.
•
There are plans for a 70-berth marina in Truro, Cornwall, likely to be part of a bigger development scheme
in the area.
•
Swansea Marina increased its capacity from 400 to 550 marina berths in January 2007. By June 2007, 130
of these 150 additional berths were already occupied.
•
•
Porthmadog Yacht Club invested in 25 additional pontoon berths to Porthmadog Harbour in 2006. The aim
is to free up many of the existing moorings for visiting boats.
Uphill Boat Centre is based on a 12-acre site in Weston-super-Mare and has already been granted planning
permission. It has plans for a gradual expansion in line with demand and will continue to install new
pontoons as required.
•
Waterside Marina is a new development of 140 apartments, 8 houses and a 60 berth marina in
Brightlingsea, Essex, and is due to open in summer 2007.
•
In 2003, Ipswich Haven Marina invested £300,000 to add an extra 50 large berths on 12 and 15 metre
fingers with a new access bridge and an additional toilet and shower block.
•
Fambridge Yacht Haven has improved their pontoon layout to add another 20-30 berths over the last few
years. It has also installed a new 100 metre pontoon in 2006 (extended to 120m in 2007) to be used by
visiting boats, club events, regatta’s and for the introduction of a new valet berthing service, which aims to
provide the convenience of walk-aboard berths for customers of swinging moorings.
•
Wisbech Yacht Harbour increased its capacity from 75 to 128 marina berths during 2006. In April 2007, a
new 75 tonne boat hoist was commissioned.
East Midlands
•
Fosdyke Yacht Haven is a new, private development on the River Welland comprising 350 marina berths, a
50 tonne boat hoist, repair services, a chandlery and shore storage.
North East
•
In January 2005, Royal Quays Marina in North Shields made a significant investment to expand the marina,
adding 60 new berths. This has since been followed in April 2006 by adding a further 10 berths.
Scotland
18
There are plans to develop the East of Albert area of the St Helier waterfront, involving commercial and
passenger port operations as well as the expansion and improvement of marina and marine leisure facilities.
•
Portavadie Marina is a new marina development on Loch Fyne, which has recently opened in July 2007,
although the development of the site is ongoing. The marina comprises 230 berths, a fuel berth, 18 tonne
boat hoist, and boat repair services. Additional facilities and services are to be added over time.
•
Largs Yacht Haven has invested more than £750,000 between 2002 and 2006 to add 80 new berths to the
marina.
•
Lossiemouth Marina constructed 6 additional pontoon fingers in 2004, adding 12 new marina berths.
•
Troon Yacht Haven has added 44 new marina berths, comprising 14 additional 12 metre berths installed in
January/February 2006 and 30 additional 9 metre berths installed between October 2006 and March 2007.
•
The new Banff Marina development opened earlier in 2007 after a £1.3 million investment. The harbour
basin was dredged to allow it to accommodate boats up to 10 metres in length before a fully serviced
pontoon system of 76 berths was installed.
•
Holy Loch marina added 50 marina berths in 2002 to increase its capacity to 150.
South East
•
Swanwick Marina was purchased by Premier Marinas in 2005. Premier Marinas is now proposing an
integrated £40 million redevelopment to introduce a new Marina Pavilion, featuring a chandlery, restaurant,
bar as well as units for boat sales and other marina-related businesses. The plans also include the relocation
and expansion of the boatyard and a waterside residential development of 49 new houses. This
redevelopment is expected to create new jobs and provide new housing (with 35% allocated as affordable
homes for those on low incomes). The plans have been assessed in terms of any potential environmental
impact on the local wildlife and ecology and measures have been incorporated to enhance the adjacent
conservation areas, linking up with existing local footpaths and creating a new riverside walk.
•
MDL has major plans for the existing Ocean Village Marina in Southampton to make it “the premiere
marine events destination on the south coast”. Proposals include a new Marina Control Centre, a 225 bed
hotel with conference and events facilities, and relocation of the car park to allow for a broader mix of uses
around the waterfront, including an Innovation Centre linking to the National Oceanography Centre at
Southampton University. These plans are aimed at encouraging links between the marina, the university,
tourism and other business sectors.
•
The Island Harbour Marina has recently been taken over by new owners. A £20 million redevelopment
project commenced in June 2006, which plans to build 48 new waterfront houses with berths, and redesign
the marina layout, adding new pontoons, a new control tower, offices, restaurant, chandlers, 50 tonne boat
hoist, repair facilities, and a new 100 metre outer waiting pontoon.
19
•
Dover Harbour Board is drawing up plans for a new marina as part of its vision for the port for the next 30
years. A major re-development of the Western Docks, which includes the marina, is envisaged in the master
plan.
•
The town of East Cowes is undergoing a significant redevelopment, including housing, a supermarket, car
parking, business units, and possibly also day-to-day boat fitting and repair facilities, and a marina with
approximately 320 berths, constructed to accommodate yachting events.
•
Port Solent Marina has plans to undertake some remodelling of marina berths along a linear wall in the
marina.
A major £300 million port development is proposed for Bathside Bay in Harwich. The plans, which include
a new marina, are expected to create some 772 direct jobs, with many more created in businesses
connected to the port's activities and also in new inward investments by companies seeking to be close to
the major port facility.
•
There are proposals for a marina at Boal Quay, King's Lynn, which would include the installation of a sea
lock to The Wash and North Sea via the River Great Ouse as well as the creation of a non-tidal navigable
waterway along the River Nar to connect King's Lynn to the inland waterways network.
•
Ipswich Haven Marina has plans to install an additional 20 large berths of 12 and 15 metres as well as new
fuel pumps and tanks and also purchase a larger ‘boat mover’ to help create additional shore storage at a
cost of £215,000.
•
Lowestoft Haven Marina has recently had approval for a £500,000 spend to provide 46 new berths at
Hamilton Quay to complement the existing marina at School Road, where extensive ground refurbishment
will be carried out for parking and new facilities including a new smaller hoist to increase the number of
boats on the same land footprint and provide a secure boat/ car park area.
•
Fambridge Yacht Haven also has plans to construct both indoor and open-fronted storage units at
Fambridge, each capable of handling boats of up to 16 metres in length.
•
Tollesbury Marina plans to improve shore storage within the boatyard and would like to expand if the
necessary land can be purchased and planning permission can be gained.
•
Wisbech Yacht Harbour plans to add a further 60 berths in a location further downstream.
North East
•
•
Royal Quays Marina plans to increase capacity by a further 50 berths in late 2007 at a cost of £160,000.
This will increase capacity to 350 berths, while there are also longer term plans to stagger further growth
over the next five years, with the potential to increase the overall capacity to 450-500 berths and develop
associated shore-side facilities.
20
•
A £100 million investment is proposed for Martello Quays, in Pembroke Dock. The planning application
features a 260 berth marina, car parking, marine workshops and a chandlery, 450 houses and apartments, a
new public promenade, shops, a pub and restaurant, a hotel, and a five-screen multiplex cinema.
•
There are plans for a £7 million investment to develop a new 450-berth marina at Beaumaris in Wales.
Progress is currently being delayed, while key issues, for example about fisheries, are resolved.
•
There are also plans for a £10 million project to develop a new 540-berth marina in Fishguard. The plans
are currently on hold until the ownership of a stretch of the Pembrokeshire coastline has been established.
Holyhead Marina plans to expand its capacity to 500 berths over the next two years.
•
There are plans to increase the capacity of Milford Marina by 70 berths later in 2007 to meet increasing
customer demand, raising the total capacity to 325 berths.
•
There are plans to develop Ardyne Marina, a new 220 berth marina as part of a project including the
development of 220 houses, a 120-bed hotel, a restaurant, shops and a ferry terminal.
•
There are also plans to transform semi-derelict brownfield sites on the Greenock waterfront into a mixedused development, comprising residential (290 properties), commercial and leisure facilities including a 220
berth marina. The investment is expected to cost £45 million.
•
Phase II of the Portavadie Marina Project has been granted planning permission for 19 residential units
overlooking the new marina, with development scheduled for 2008. The plans also include undercover
shore storage, workshop and engineering facilities, a chandlery, brokerage, restaurant, and helicopter
landing facilities.
•
There are plans for a significant investment to construct pontoons for 60 berths at Hopeman Harbour in
Scotland.
•
Clyde Marina has plans to add an additional 300-350 berths.
•
Kip Marina plans to install an additional 60 berths in 2008.
•
Ardfern Yacht Centre plans to add 20 new berths for 12-16 metre boats once it has overcome issues
relating to the provision of mains water and developed on-site services.
•
Largs Yacht Haven plans to install an additional 50 marina berths in 2008.
•
Lossiemouth Marina intends to add 16 to 20 new berths in 2007.
•
Holy Loch Marina has been granted planning permission to add another 250 berths over next 12 years, to
take its overall capacity to 400 berths.
•
2.3.6
Carrickfergus Marina is currently looking at the possibility of adding additional pontoons although there are
no firm plans at present.
Local Impacts of Marina Developments
The recent developments and future projects listed above will have a number of impacts on the local economy
and local community of each coastal marina. We would expect coastal marinas making renovations or adding
marina berths to attract a greater number of visitors to spend money in the local economy. Increases in berthing
and shore storage capacities will increase the number of boats kept at the marina and thereby increase the
number of potential customers for local marine related services, such as boat repair, maintenance and chandlery.
Wales
Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) has gained outline consent to develop a 400-berth marina at the
Prince of Wales Dock in Swansea as part of the £200 million Swansea SA1 development project. This is a
mixed use business, leisure and residential development on the Swansea waterfront that aims to transform
Swansea's East docklands.
•
Northern Ireland
The plans for a new marina at Berwick upon Tweed are now progressing, undertaking the necessary studies
to satisfy the relevant environmental regulations. The anticipated size of the marina is not yet known,
although the local council believes a marina “could offer huge advantages to the town in terms of jobs,
business, leisure and tourism and so could contribute greatly to Berwick’s successful regeneration.”
•
Hafan Pwllheli Marina is hoping to be able to add 150 visitors and events pontoons in 2008. The original
proposal involved letting these berths to annual berth-holders, however this was rejected because of
concerns that this would encourage the purchase of second homes in the local area, inflating house prices
and disadvantaging local residents.
Scotland
East
•
•
There are a number of new marinas planned, as discussed above, as well as other large scale redevelopment
and regeneration projects around existing marinas. There are projects planned in most regions including the
Channel Islands, South West, South East, Eastern, North East, Wales and Scotland. These projects represent
significant inward investment opportunities for local economies, with the potential to create a large number of
new jobs, both directly through marina and other on-site businesses and indirectly through existing supplier
businesses in the local area. Many of these projects are also likely to add to the leisure and tourism offer of the
local area to the benefit of the local community as well as attracting other non-boating leisure visitors to spend
money in the local economy.
2.4
Demand for Marina Berths
The above sections have focused on the supply of marina berths in the UK. The demand for marina berths is
very difficult to estimate with any degree of accuracy, although some indication can be gauged by examining:
•
Levels of occupancy and vacancy rates for marinas, to identify whether there are instances of excess supply;
•
Waiting lists for marina berths, to identify the scale of unmet demand.
21
The BMF audit of coastal marinas and moorings 2003/04 involved a large scale survey of marina berths and
moorings providers and received 412 responses, providing useful information on the size and scale of waiting
lists and levels of occupancy of berths in the UK. Anecdotal evidence from the marina managers, collected
during this study suggests that demand in Scotland, Wales and the north of England has increased or remained
firm. There is evidence of an easing of capacity constraints and a softening of prices in the south since the audit
in 2003, which indicated very low vacancy rates and high demand throughout the region.
Waiting lists can fluctuate significantly over time and the steering group agreed there was a need to provide
more recent data by undertaking a new, smaller scale survey among marina operators with TYHA.
The original audit recognised that waiting lists provide an imprecise measure of demand for a variety of reasons,
such as people registering on a number of different marinas lists while waiting for a berth to become available,
while other people will register on waiting lists before deciding whether or not they actually intend to purchase
a boat. When a berth does becomes available and contact is made, it is at that stage that a genuine lead (or
not) is established.
2.5
Estimates of National and Regional Berthing Fees
Berthing fees can also be used as an indicator of demand, as high or excess demand for berths at coastal
marinas would be expected to be reflected in higher prices. The RYA Marina Guide 2006 provides information
about berthing fees per metre of boat length but these fees are considered conservatives. This information has
been updated, where possible, using information from the respective marinas and their websites, and Tables 2.4
and 2.5 present an analysis of this data.
In order to generate national and regional averages it has been necessary to calculate a weighted average
dependent on the number of berths and marinas within each region. It should be noted that the sample sizes
differ for annual and overnight berthing fees due to the availability of data, and the accuracy of the average
fees for each region will be sensitive to the number and type of marinas for which information was collected.
Table 2.4: Average Annual Berthing Fees (July 2007)
Marinas are well aware of these issues and many have started to charge potential customers to secure a place
on their waiting list in a bid to ensure that most people registering on waiting lists are likely to be genuine
leads.
As part of this study, a short survey was sent out to 156 TYHA coastal marina members to provide an up to
date measure of demand for marina berths. The survey asked whether or not marinas believe they have excess
demand for berths of a range of sizes from less than 8 metres to more than 14 metres. The survey received a
total of 49 responses, including the nine case study marinas interviewed as part of this study. Using the analysis
above, these 49 marinas represent approximately 21% of the estimated 238 coastal marinas in the UK, while
the survey responses suggest that these 49 marinas account for more than 17,000 berths (more than 35% of
the estimated number of berths in the UK). Therefore, this survey sample comprises a relatively high number of
the large providers of marina berths in the UK.
Table 2.5: Average Overnight Berthing Fees (July 2007)
The findings of the survey are presented in Table 2.3 and include the proportion of marinas indicating excess
demand for marina berths of each size group within each region.
Table 2.3: Excess Demand for Coastal Marina Berths by Size
Source: GHK analysis of data collected from marina websites
Note(s): Berthing fees are recorded as the price per metre of boat length, based on a 10 metre boat.
The above figures represent a weighted average dependent on the number of berths in each region.
Source: Survey of TYHA members, June 2007
Note(s): The numbers in brackets represent the number of responses within that region for that particular size of berth. n/r is used to represent no responses.
The sample sizes differ by berth size because not all marinas will provide berths in every size group.
It is important to note that the sample of respondents in many regions is very small and these findings should be treated as indicative.
Table 2.3 suggests that the majority of respondent marinas reported excess demand for marina berths of all
sizes. Interestingly the proportion of marinas indicating excess demand for berths increases in relation to berth
size, from 58% of respondents reporting excess demand for berths of less than 8 metres, to 82% of marinas
reporting excess demand for the largest berths of more than 14 metres. This provides further evidence of a
growing trend in new boat purchases towards larger boats, which is discussed in more detail below in Section
2.6.4.
Dry stack provision is very much in its infancy and was only available at 10 marinas in this sample, three of
which suggested they had excess demand for this facility. These three were all located in the south. It will be
interesting to see how the demand for dry stack develops, and impacts on the demand for smaller berths, once
it becomes more established.
The regional findings are indicative only due to the limited sample sizes. The South West and South East
regions have the largest sample sizes and the data suggest that a relatively high proportion of coastal marinas
in these regions have excess demand for marina berths of all sizes, while Scotland and the Eastern region
appear to follow the national trend of greater excess demand for the larger berths.
22
na is used to show where no information was available.
* The figures for the Channel Islands are exclusive of VAT.
The data suggest that the average berthing fee in the UK is £283 per annum per metre of boat length, while
the typical overnight fee is £2.27 per metre. This equates annually to £2,830 for a 10 metre boat, with an
average overnight fee of £22.70. The analysis found considerable variance in fees between different marinas,
even within the same region, which appeared to reflect the quality and number of services provided by each
marina as well as the likely demand for berths within that area. Annual berthing fees ranged from a minimum
of £84 per metre to a maximum of £759 per metre, reflecting location and range of facilities available.
Interestingly both extremes were located in the South West region. Overnight berthing fees ranged from £0.60
to £3.82 per metre.
It is perhaps unsurprising that average annual berthing fees in the South West and the South East are the
highest. London and Scotland have slightly higher than average annual berthing fees, while all other regions
have lower annual berthing fees, relative to the UK average. It is the regions in central and northern England,
Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands that have the lowest annual berthing rates. The relatively low fees in
the Channel Islands reflect the need to compete with berthing fees of French marinas, which are typically lower
than those in the UK, but are considered to be too low for reinvestment and growth. It was not possible to
collect up to date information on berthing fees for marinas in the East Midlands or on the Isle of Man.
However, the RYA Marina Guide 2006 suggests that annual and overnight fees in these areas were the lowest
of all UK marinas at that time. It would be fair to assume that this remains the case and could therefore
suggest that the results of this analysis may actually slightly overestimate the true national averages.
23
Interestingly, regional differences are not the same for overnight berthing fees. The South West is the most
expensive regional destination for visiting boaters, followed by the South East and London. All other regions
are cheaper than the national average, including Scotland, the North West and Eastern regions, which are
relatively less expensive for visiting boaters compared to their cost for annual berth-holders. The Eastern region
actually has the lowest average overnight fees of all UK regions. The high average overnight berthing fees in
the South West reflect the region’s popularity as a tourist destination and the large number of overnight visitors
relative to marina capacity.
2.6.2
Vail Williams suggests that the demand for marina berths continues to increase across the UK and particularly
on the south coast. One reason is that demand for berths is being driven by the ageing (and increasingly
affluent) UK population as marina users tend to be over 55 and of the AB social group.
The over 55 population of Great Britain has grown at twice the rate of the total population between 1981 and
2005, according to NOMIS data, and there are now approximately 16 million over 55 year olds in Great Britain.
This age group is also becoming increasingly wealthy and includes ‘the Charmed Generation’, a group of
around 2 million over 55s with the highest disposable income of any consumer age group, according to
20plus30 Consulting. They estimate the net capital worth of this group to be £1 billion, a level of wealth that
is unlikely to be repeated in future generations. The wealth of this generation has evolved as a result of
significant appreciation in property value over the decades, defined-benefit pensions, inheritance and careful
spending during their youth. However, the over 55s now have more leisure time and are increasingly spending
on luxury goods and services, such as boats and holidays. The latest Watersports and Leisure Participation
Survey suggests that participation in yachting is fairly static but participation in motor boating is steadily
increasing for those aged 55 and over.4
High and increasing berthing costs imply strong demand. The Harrington Harbour Regeneration Study
(Halcrow, May 2006) suggests that evidence for national movements in berthing charges is limited but that
there have been moderate increases from 2003 to 2005 of between 5 and 10% in nominal terms.
2.6
Sector Trends and Barriers
2.6.1
Supply Restrictions and Constraints
Planning and environmental constraints are increasingly becoming a barrier restricting the number of potential
sites for marina developments, according to the experience of the sector generally. The marine property
division of the commercial property agency Vail Williams reports that demand for marina sites remains high
amongst existing marina companies and potential new entrants to the market. This has been evidenced by the
strong competition between operators to purchase Sparkes Marina (acquired by MDL) and to develop a new
marina in Portland Harbour for the Olympics (currently being developed by Dean & Reddyhoff). The high
demand is reported as being due to the continued strong growth in income from berthing fees. If the supply
of marina berths is constrained then it is likely that increases in berthing fees will continue.
This issue is also highlighted in the latest BMF Marine Industry Trends Survey (Spring 2007) of a cross-section of
BMF Members (a representative sample including 185 responses). The survey findings suggest that the marine
industry was in a better position for the 6-month survey period than during the previous two years with higher
order book values and current workloads, and indications of an uplift in employment following a period of
constant workforce numbers. However one of the main concerns described by marine businesses is the
amount of regulation and red tape, particularly relating to planning and environmental legislation. The number
of marine businesses spontaneously mentioning this as a major issue continues to grow over time and it is
described as a major barrier to both productivity and greater exports. This issue is causing a barrier to
productivity because of the increasing amount of resource required to manage the regulations and bureaucracy.
The survey of TYHA marina members, undertaken as part of this study, also asked marinas to explain any
reasons why they might have not expanded or made any changes in recent years. The main reasons included:
•
The cost of infrastructure to create a marina basin is prohibitive and cannot be paid for by the marina
investment alone. There needs therefore to be other forms of value creation to subsidise the infrastructure
cost and problems can be encountered if local stakeholders object to the associated development.
•
Physical space limitations preventing both expansion of the marina site, and the addition of new berths
within existing layouts.
•
Problems securing planning permission and the costs and timescales involved in environmental assessments,
which require marina operators to pay large upfront costs often with lengthy decision-making processes and
uncertainty in gaining consents. Often primarily for environmental reasons, but also in some cases because
of opposition from local pressure groups.
•
Local authorities blocking proposed developments because of a fear that it will encourage new berthholders to purchase second homes in the local area, inflating house prices out of reach of the existing local
population.
•
Problems gaining consent from DEFRA for dredging, for example due to the presence of tributyltin (TBT) in
old dockyard sites.
This evidence suggests these barriers have restricted the development of marinas for some time, with the
Coastal Marinas and Moorings Audit 2003/04 identifying a number of similar constraints to the provision of
marina berths and moorings, including:
•
A lack of appropriate space on land and water
•
The planning system
•
Environmental issues
•
Finance issues
•
Increased costs of dredging.
Strong Demand
The strong and growing demand for marina berths is being driven by an increasing trend towards convenient
boating. Boaters increasingly want ‘hassle-free’ berthing for convenience and to maximise boating time.
Interestingly, during the redevelopment of Mylor Yacht Harbour in Cornwall, a survey was undertaken through
a regional newspaper asking readers to choose the three most important marina attributes from a list of ten
and submit their answers for an opportunity to win a free marina berth at Mylor for a year. The top three
attributes were convenience, full-tidal access, and time to sailing waters, which highlight the growing
importance of convenient, hassle-free boating.
Demand for boats has also been driven by the increasingly affordable cost of new boats. Cheaper materials
and costs of production mean that the cost of new boats has become more affordable, which has also forced
down the prices of used boats, making the cost of purchasing a boat achievable for a larger proportion of the
population. The cost of new boats has been declining relative to house prices and many people are choosing
to purchase a new boat rather than a second home.
2.6.3
Ease of Travel and Growth of International Berth Supply
The lack of availability of berths, and long waiting lists in some areas, together with the ease and affordability
of national and international flights, means boats are less likely to be berthed in a local marina. For example, it
is not uncommon for boat owners in England to keep their boats in Scotland, Jersey, France or even further
afield. The ‘Sailing in the Clyde Estuary’ study (McKenzie Wilson Partnership, June 2006) reports that 30% of
boats permanently based in marinas on the Clyde are owned by English residents. This figure is expected to
continue to rise as boat owners seek less busy waters and cheaper berths than those on the south coast of
England. This can clearly have economic implications (diverting expenditures and associated economic impacts
to other regions and countries) and also has implications for the environment as a result of greater air travel.
UK boat-owners choosing to berth their boat overseas, in other parts of Europe, is an increasing trend. Not
only are European flights becoming more affordable, but there is an ever increasing choice of destinations from
regional airports in the UK. This trend is also being driven by the increasing supply of European marina berths
and a significant number of new developments taking place along European coasts. Marina development
activity is currently concentrated around the Mediterranean, but is moving further east, away from the South of
France and Spain. The South of France has little opportunity for growth through new developments due to a
lack of developable sites and most activity involves the refurbishment of existing marinas. However, there is
much more opportunity in Italy, where a large number of new marina developments are taking place, or
planned, along the country’s 8,000km coastline. There are also increasing levels of investment in marina
developments in Eastern Europe in Croatia, Turkey, Greece, Montenegro and Albania and in North Africa,
particularly in Tunisia. These destinations are increasing offering viable berthing alternatives to UK boat owners.
Marina developments in other European countries have to meet similar environmental and planning criteria as
in the UK and environmental issues and planning requirements cause challenges in all countries. However,
these countries typically have strong support of the relevant local authorities and agencies to ensure new
developments can overcome barriers and continue to progress. For example in 1997, Italy reacted to a reported
excess demand for marina berths by introducing a new law to enable private firms to obtain state concession
for building new marinas.5 The number of berths has increased by more than a third since the end of the
1990s, and has been driving a similar rate of growth in the economic contribution of marine tourism in the
country. Another example concerns the coastal town of Puglia in Italy where the local council has stated that
the development of tourist harbours is one of the council’s primary targets over the next three years and a 65%
growth in berths is expected, with corresponding business opportunities.
4 BMF, MCA, RNLI, RYA sponsored by Sunsail Watersports and Leisure Participation Survey 2006 (by Arkenford)
24
5 Marina World (July/August 2007)
25
2.6.4
However, European countries do have their own issues relating to the coastal marinas sector and an increasingly
common issue concerns the introduction of new taxes. For example, a new ‘luxury tax’ has been introduced in
Sardinia, which is primarily aimed at non-residents and applies to yachts of greater than 14 metres in length,
second homes and private aircraft. This new tax has already resulted in owners of large yachts moving to other
Mediterranean locations.
waterfront property with a sea view would command a 10% premium over a property without a sea view,
while a marina view could command a 16% premium. These estimates are considered rather conservative in a
national context, but provide evidence that a coastal marina development enhances the appearance,
attractiveness, and image of the local area, and raises property values above those of an equivalent coastal
location without a marina.
Increasing Boat Sizes
The case study summaries in Chapter 4 document the linkages between marinas and regeneration at a local level.
The current trend in boat purchases is for bigger boats, and this is again being driven by increasing disposable
incomes. This can cause a challenge for marinas which might not be able to receive larger craft or have to
decide whether they want to focus their marina on smaller boats, or fewer, larger boats and follow the
consumer trends. This also has implications for the boaters themselves, as TYHA suggests that there is now a
shortage of 12 to 14 metre berths6 and the survey of marina operators discussed above suggests that excess
demand for larger berths is greater than for smaller berths. Marinas increasingly have to reconfigure pontoon
layouts to accommodate larger boats to meet consumer demand, whilst also considering the requirements of
smaller boats, which typically represent a more profitable use of space in terms of berthing fees.
Figure 2.1: St. Helier, Jersey
Not only does this have implications for marinas in terms of berth sizes but it can also restrict other areas of
marina and tenant businesses such as boat repair, maintenance and storage services. This is because marinas
are restricted in the size of boats they can lift out of the water by the capacity of their respective boat hoists.
Marinas with limited boat hoist capacities are at risk of losing customers for boatyard services and shore storage
if the trend towards larger boats continues unless they invest in larger hoisting equipment. This will also restrict
the availability of boat lifting and shore storage options for owners of larger boats.
2.6.5
Increasing Quality of UK Marinas
The quality of marinas is reported to have increased due to improvements in the marina infrastructure. The
Yacht Harbour Association (TYHA) established the ‘Gold Anchor Award Scheme’ to encourage improvements in
the standards of facilities available to boat owners at inland and coastal marinas. The scheme is voluntary and all
TYHA members, both in the UK and overseas, can enter the scheme and volunteer for assessment. An assessor
appointed by TYHA management council will visit each site and determine the level of the award, which ranges
from three to five Gold Anchors, based on the level and quality of facilities available. The awards offer an
incentive for marina operators to improve the standards of their facilities by recognising the quality of marina
facilities and providing an opportunity for successful marinas to use the award as a focus in advertising and
promotional materials. To date the scheme has granted Gold Anchor awards to 76 different marinas in total.
These include 49 Five Gold Anchor awards, 25 Four Gold Anchor awards and 2 Three Gold Anchor Awards.
The majority of these awards (42) have been granted to coastal marinas in the UK. The recipients of these Gold
Anchor awards are dominated by the main marina operators reviewed above. These multiple marina operators
account for more than 60% (26) of the Gold Anchor awards received by UK coastal marinas. The marinas
operated by Jersey Harbours jointly hold one Gold Anchor award, while Yacht Havens Ltd also has one Gold
Anchor marina, ABP has two, Premier Marinas and Quay Marinas have four and five respectively, while MDL has
13 Gold Anchor coastal marinas in the UK.
This dominance is even more marked for recipients of the 5 Gold Anchors award, with the multiple marina
operators accounting for more than 75% (20) of the UK coastal marinas which have received this award. This
is perhaps not surprising given the significant size of many of these marinas and the number and quality of
facilities they provide. Independent marina operators and marinas managed by local authorities account for the
remaining 16 Gold Anchor award winners in UK coastal marinas, with a greater proportion achieving the 4
Gold Anchor award.
2.7
Links Between Marinas and Regeneration
Marinas have an important role to play in local regeneration schemes, particularly as many of the areas in need of
regeneration, particularly in the larger cities in the UK, have run-down and disadvantaged areas alongside docks
and estuaries. Locating marinas in brownfield sites such as this can have multiple benefits by improving the local
environment while providing marina and boatyard facilities away from more environmentally sensitive areas.
Marinas and the provision of boating facilities can play a key role in local regeneration by stimulating economic
activity, providing employment opportunities and driving social and economic improvements and growth.
Coastal Marinas can improve the image and appearance of the local area, making it a more desirable place to
live, thereby increasing the demand for residential and commercial property in that area and increasing property
prices. A housing market assessment was undertaken by Alder King in 2006 as part of the Economic Impact
Assessment of the Brixham Regeneration Programme7, which includes proposals for a 500 berth marina as an
extension to the existing MDL facility or as a separate facility. The Alder King assessment suggested that a
6 TYHA (March 2007) Fore & Aft
26
7 GHK (2006) Brixham Regeneration: Economic Impact Assessment
27
3
ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF MARINAS
3.1
Introduction
The development and operation of coastal marinas generates economic impacts in various different ways. For
example:
Figure 3.1: Sources of Economic Impact
Key Indicators
Users
Boating users
• Resident
• Visiting
No. of berths
No. of leisure visitors
and overnight stays
–
Fees paid for marina services by boating users (resident and visiting) support output and employment
among marina operators;
–
Marina operators purchase goods and services from other firms, supporting output and employment in the
supply chain;
Leisure Visitors
• Day visitors
• Staying visitors
–
Boating users spend money on marine goods and services, supporting output and employment among onsite and local businesses (e.g. chandlery, boat repair and maintenance firms, fuel providers etc.);
Residents/local communities
–
Boating users spend money on food, drink, accommodation and retail items both on and off site;
–
Some marinas may also be used by non-boating leisure visitors, who spend money on food, drink and retail
goods on site;
–
There are additional benefits to the local tourism sector as marinas attract people to coastal locations,
spending money in the wider local economy;
–
The marina sector has an important influence on the marine sector as a whole, by influencing the number
of boats sold and kept in the UK, which determines output and employment among companies involved in
boatbuilding, distribution, maintenance and related services and supply chains;
Tourism spend
(accommodation/meals)
Property investment
Expenditures:
• Marina fees
• Retail
• Food and drink
• Boats
• Boating
goods/services
• Supply chain spend
• On site and off site
–
Marinas can play a role in the wider development and regeneration of coastal areas, with effects on
residential and commercial property investment.
Boats
Property investment
Expenditures
Spend on marine goods/ services
(fuel, maintenance, chandlery etc.)
Leisure spend (retail/food/drink etc.)
Expenditures by marina users;
–
Business turnover;
–
Purchases of goods and services;
–
Gross Value Added (GVA);
–
Profit;
–
Wages and salaries;
–
No. of properties
developed/enhanced
Supply chain effects
These effects can be measured through a wide range of economic indicators, including:
–
Marina fees
No. of resident and
visiting marina users
Marina operators
Turnover
Marine goods/services companies
Employment
Boat builders and distributors
Value Added
Supply chain companies
Profit
Food/drink businesses
Wages
Rents and property prices;
Retailers
Tax
–
Taxes;
Wider local tourism/leisure sector
Property prices
–
Property investment;
Employees
Rents
–
Wider regeneration effects.
Property developers
Business rates
Local residents
Section 106
obligations
In order to develop a comprehensive picture of the economic impact of coastal marinas, it is necessary to
consider a wide range of businesses affected, including marinas themselves, tenant businesses, neighbouring
businesses, the wider tourism sector, and the property sector. A simple illustration of these economic impacts
and the indicators that can be used to measure them is given in Figure 3.1.
Beneficiaries
Landowners
Local authorities
The economic impacts listed in Figure 3.1 comprise a combination of direct, indirect and induced effects.
Examples of these are given in Table 3.1.
28
29
Table 3.1: Examples of Direct, Indirect and Induced Effects
3.5
Employment and Wages
The BMF estimates that the leisure boating industry employed a FTE equivalent of more than 35,000 people in
2005/06. More than 5,000 people were employed in the marinas, moorings and boatyard services sector, of
which approximately 1,700 are estimated to be employed by coastal marinas. This figure only includes those
people employed by coastal marina operators to work directly on the running the marina and will exclude any
people employed by the marina operator in different functions, such as boat repair, retail, etc. These
employment estimates are presented in Table 3.3 below.
Table 3.3: Employment by Marine Sub-Sector in 2005/06 (FTEs)
Some of these indicators can be estimated at a national level (e.g. estimates of gross expenditure, output and
employment), while the case studies provide evidence of the effects that marinas have in attracting money
flows into local economies, and the overall local impacts of these money flows including indirect and induced
effects, resulting from supplier and employee expenditures.
This chapter presents an assessment of the economic benefits of the coastal marinas sector. One of the primary
aims of this study was to update and refine the earlier report, the BMF Economic Benefits of the UK Leisure
Boating Industry (also undertaken by GHK), to take account of new information and evidence, but avoid any
unnecessary duplication of effort. This chapter therefore aims to provide a brief and concise discussion of the
methodology and approach used to establish the economic benefit of marinas in the UK. The associated
tourism benefits are also discussed below.
3.2
Source: UK Leisure and Small Commercial Marina Industry: Key Performance Indicators, BMF, 2005/06
Estimates of the wages paid to employees are a significant part of the income-based method for estimating
added value, and provide the basis for estimating income tax contributions. This study uses two different
methods to estimate wage costs in the coastal marinas sub-sector. This first approach uses an assumption that
the average wage in the coastal marinas sector is £20,000, which has been estimated following consultation
with industry representatives, although wages will vary by region. These have been multiplied by the latest
employment figures for the sector to provide estimates of total wage costs. The second approach uses typical
industry specific ratios of wage costs to turnover, from official statistics, applied to the latest BMF turnover data.
The results of this analysis are included in Table 3.4 below.
Business Numbers
The UK leisure marine industry consists of around 4,300 businesses8, of which approximately 840 are related to
marinas, moorings and boatyard services, based on analysis of BMF membership data. The above analysis of
coastal marinas in Section 2.3.1 estimates that there are 238 coastal marinas operated by these businesses.
3.3
Turnover
The total turnover of businesses within the UK leisure boating industry in 2005/06 was estimated at £2.8
billion. This figure is more than double the turnover of camping and caravan sites in the UK (£1.2 billion),
higher than the turnover of the UK film production industry (£2.3 billion), and higher than the turnover
generated by the UK’s sports arenas and stadiums (£2.2 billion).9
The approach and methodology to estimating turnover was reviewed for the latest BMF annual industry
statistics, the Key Performance Indicators report to provide a new industry model and baseline. The BMF now
collects more detailed sector information from BMF Members and this has been supplemented by an
investigation and analysis of non-member marine companies. This ensures that national industry estimates are
now based on factual information about the size and structure of the industry, instead of solely extrapolating
BMF Member data. This approach estimates that marinas, moorings and boatyard services account for turnover
of £315 million, of which coastal marinas contribute £113 million, purely from core marina operations. Table
3.2 presents gross sales data for the different marine sub-sectors.
Table 3.4: Annual Wages Paid by the UK Marinas Sub-Sectors, 2005/06 (£ million)
(1) Employment levels x average wages , BMF Key Performance Indicators 2005/06;
(2) Annual Business Inquiry industry turnover: wage ratios x turnover data from BMF Key Performance Indicators 2005/06.
Annual wages paid in the marinas, moorings and boatyard services sector are estimated to be £108 million, of
which £35 million is paid in wages to employees in the coastal marinas sub-sector.
3.6
Profitability
Consultation with industry representatives, undertaken during this study, suggested that profits can vary
significantly between operators, depending on the set up of each site and the range of activities undertaken. A
conservative estimate has been used in this analysis to estimate profits in the marinas, moorings and boatyard
services sector of £32 million, and £11 million for just the core operations of the coastal marinas sub-sector.
Table 3.2: Gross UK Sales of New Boats, Boating Equipment and Services (£m) in 2005/06
3.7
Taxes
Total tax contributions of the sector are based on estimates of value added tax (VAT), income tax and
corporation tax, using the relevant tax rates.10 The total tax contribution of the marinas, moorings and boatyard
services sector has been estimated at £50 million and £20 million for the coastal marinas sector separately.
3.8
Source: UK Leisure and Small Commercial Marina Industry: Key Performance Indicators, BMF, 2005/06
3.4
Trade Balance
The value of exports/imports arising from activities associated with the marina sector is considered to be a very
minor aspect of core activities and hence has not been included in this report.
8 British Marine Federation (2005/06) UK Leisure and Small Commercial Marine Industry: Key Performance Indicators
30
9 Annual Business Inquiry (ABI), ONS, 2005 data
Retail Market Estimates
The 2004 BMF European Overview provides estimates of the total UK retail value of the marinas, moorings and
boatyard services sector based on 2003 data. In the absence of more recent estimates, these figures have been
pro-rated using the latest BMF estimates of industry revenue. This provides a conservative estimate of the total
UK net retail value of the marinas, moorings and boatyard services sector of £285 million, comprising £156
million for marinas and moorings and £128 million for boatyard services. Expenditure data for coastal marinas
is not available, but using the ratio of revenue between coastal and inland marinas, suggests that the UK retail
value of coastal marinas is £105 million.
10 VAT: 17.5% of estimated net output; Income Tax: 22% of estimated wages; Corporation Tax: 30% of estimated profits
31
3.9
Value Added
likely to be greater than their share of capacity. The sector also adds considerable value to local coastal
economies in the East of England, Scotland, Wales and the Channel Islands.
Estimates of value added in the marinas sector have been derived in three ways and then averaged in order to
provide one consolidated estimate:
•
Output measure: industry specific ratios for the value of net output (net sales) supported by £1 million of
gross sales taken from official statistics and applied to BMF gross sales data (to reflect the difference
between gross sales and purchases of intermediate goods and services).
•
Income measure: The sum of returns to labour (wages) and capital (profits).
•
Expenditure measure: The total value of final demand for marinas, based on UK retail market estimates.
Table 3.7: Regional Value Added Estimates for Core Marina Sector
The value added of the marinas, moorings and boatyard services sector, and the coastal marinas sector
individually, is presented in Table 3.5 and has been estimated at around £188 million and £69 million
respectively.
Table 3.5: Estimated Value Added for the Marinas Sector
Source: GHK calculations using 2005 ONS data for Headline GVA at current basic prices by region
Note: It is important to note that these figures are for core marina operations only and that the overall impacts of coastal marinas and contributions to regional GVA, which include
boatyard and wider marina activity, are presented in Section 5.2.7
3.12
Notes: Expenditure Measure estimates tend to be generally higher in value than output and income estimates.
Source: GHK
3.10 Summary Findings
The contributions of the marinas, moorings and boatyard services sector include:
•
Value added of £188 million (£69 million coastal marinas)
•
5,300 jobs by 840 businesses (1,700 jobs by 238 coastal marinas)
•
£55 million in tax contributions (£21 million for coastal marinas)
The complete list of measures is summarised for the sector in Table 3.6.
Table 3.6: Marinas Sector Assessment
Source: GHK estimates
To put these findings into context, the value added of the core coastal marinas sector (£69 million) is, for
example, higher than fish and seafood retailing (£65 million), and motorcycle and bicycle manufacturing (£68
million), in the UK. The coastal marinas sector also provides high value employment with an average GVA per
employee of £41,200. This is significantly higher than the average of the total UK economy (£31,400) and
higher than the service sectors, including hotels, camping and caravan sites, and other visitor accommodation.
It is also higher than many high value sectors such as: real estate, rental and business services; the manufacture
of radio, television and communications equipment and apparatus; and the manufacture of optical instruments
and photographic equipment.11
3.11 Regional Estimates of Value Added for Coastal Marinas
Regional value added estimates have been calculated based on the regional share of marina berths, taken from
Section 2.3.1, and are presented in Table 3.7. This suggests that the core operations of the coastal marinas
sector adds most value in the South East (£24 million) and South West (£12 million) regions. In fact, the
concentration of value added in these two regions is likely to be even more marked than the estimates suggest,
since higher berthing fees and consumer expenditures in these regions mean that their share of value added is
11 ABI, ONS, 2005 data
32
Influence of Marinas on Marine Sub-Sectors
The marina sector is strongly linked with the other main marine sectors: manufacturing, distribution, retail and
brokerage, and charters and schools, through the value chain of leisure boat sales and the servicing and
running of leisure boats. The maintenance and use of boats generates demand for services, such as marinas,
boatyards, charters and schools and also drives the aftermarket for boat parts, supplies and accessories.
As mentioned above in Section 2.6.1, a key issue for the coastal marina sector is the provision of marina berths
and constraints on the ability to expand that provision to respond to demand. The BMF Coastal Marinas and
Moorings Audit suggests that high and unmet demand for marina berths in many areas is evidenced by the
high number of boats on waiting lists and expected increases in waiting lists. It also recognised that while
waiting lists provide a useful indication of the existence of unmet demand, it is more difficult to accurately
reflect the scale of this unmet demand for new boats because waiting lists will contain boaters wanting to
move their existing boats from other marinas. However, as reported by BMF in the Economic Benefits of the UK
Leisure Boating Industry 2006 report, without sufficient provision of marina berths and moorings, sales of boats
requiring berths and moorings onto the UK market will be restricted as potential consumers will not purchase a
boat if there are no appropriate marina berths or moorings available.
UK manufacturers are successful exporters, whilst the manufacture of boats for the domestic UK market has a
current turnover of £390 million12 and the boat manufacturing industry employs more than 10,000 people in
total. This turnover and employment could be at risk if the domestic market for new boats is affected by a
restricted supply of marina berths. This will also restrict the distribution and retail markets for new boats, which
currently account for 42% (£1.2 billion) of overall turnover in the UK leisure marine industry. Limits on marina
capacity will also limit growth in related activities such as tourism, charter companies, sea schools, etc. Hence,
the provision of marina berths is important in terms of marine business and tourism activities and as a key driver
for domestic boat sales, and has important knock-on consequences both for manufacturing and the wider
economy.
3.13 Tourism Impacts
The BMF estimates that tourism spend relating to the overall UK leisure boating sector totals up to £2.2 billion,
which supports 63,000 FTE jobs. The coastal marinas sub- sector is also very closely related to the wider
tourism industry. Marinas not only provide infrastructure for people to participate in leisure boating activities,
but can also serve as visitor attractions in their own right, attracting non-boating users, who spend money onsite and in the wider local economy. Marinas are the focus of many leisure and recreational activities as they
provide access to the water for watersports participants, are commonly a location for sailing clubs, hire and
charter services and training centres, and offer a wide and increasing range of tourist facilities on site for
boaters and non-boaters alike.
There are over 560,000 boats in the UK (of 2.5m and over in length), according to the BMF (2006) of which
59% are estimated to be motor boats, 38% sail boats and 3% personal watercraft. Up to approximately 3.7
million adults (more than 7% of the adult UK population) participated in leisure boating and watersports13 in
2006 (BMF, MCA, RNLI, RYA sponsored by Sunsail 2006 Watersports and Leisure Participation Survey, by
12 British Marine Federation (2005/06) UK Leisure and Small Commercial Marine Industry: Key Performance Indicators; GHK Calculations
13 Any Watersports includes: canoeing, water skiing, other small sail boat activities (dinghies), rowing, windsurfing, using personal watercraft, general motor
boating, yacht cruising, power boating, small sail boat racing (dinghies), canal boating, yacht racing
33
Arkenford), although this includes activities undertaken in the UK and abroad. The average number of UKbased trips taken each year varies depending on the particular activity but most activities are undertaken
between four and six times per year. The survey suggests that there were 10.8 million coastal trips in the UK
involving boating activity in 2006.
4
CASE STUDIES
4.1
Introduction
A primary aim of the study was to use a series of nine case studies to supplement existing information with
further primary research, and demonstrate the economic benefits and constraints of coastal marinas at the local
level. The findings are summarised below for each case study. The nine case study marinas are included on the
map below.
There is a lack of information relating to the expenditure patterns of boating day visitors, visiting coastal
marinas in the UK. The available data suggests:
•
•
There were approximately 11 million day visits to coastal waters with boats in 2004. (GHK analysis based
on data from Inland Waterways Day Visits Survey 2003, British Waterways). 9 million visits were to water
with a boat with an engine and 2 million were with a boat with no engine.
Figure 4.1: Map Showing the Location of Each Case Study Marina
The average spend for a visit on a boat with an engine is £10.39 (excluding boat-related expenditure) and is
£13.64 for visits on a boat without an engine (IWDVS, 2004). Multiplying this by the number of day visits
provides an estimated expenditure relating to day visits to coastal waters with boats of £121 million per
annum as shown in Table 3.8.
The marinas interviewed during this study suggested that the majority of overnight visitors will tend to stay for
one or two nights, although some visitors will stay for much longer. A survey of yachting tourism in the South
East suggests the average duration of overnight visits to marinas is 2 nights (Leisure Cruising in the South East,
Tourism South East, 2005). This corresponds with the earlier UK Tourism Survey in 2003 which also suggested
the average duration of overnight trips linked to watersports activities was 2 nights.
The Tourism South East study (2005) ‘Leisure Cruising in the South East’ reported that 671,000 yachtspersons
visit marinas and harbours in the South East region each year, based on a sample of approximately 1,500
visiting boats and interviews with marina and harbour managers. On average, visitors took 17 trips per year
(including day visits, weekends and longer trips), involving an average of 45.5 nights away from home for
domestic parties and 62.8 nights for overseas parties. The average expenditure per visiting party was £240 per
visit and was significantly higher for overseas visitors (£397) than domestic parties (£212). The survey found
that an average boating party included three people and stayed at the marina for two nights. This implies that
the average expenditure per person per night is £40, with a range between £35 and £66.
Largs
The 2006 Scottish Enterprise and Highlands & Islands Enterprise study into sailing on the Clyde Estuary14
suggests that the average spending of a visiting boat was £125. Given an average of three people per boat,
this equates to just over £40 per person per day. The Survey of Yacht Visitors to Jersey (2003), undertaken by
Jersey Tourism, is currently being updated, however the 2003 report suggests that visitor spending averages
£57 per person per night. Furthermore the earlier Cowes Yachting Survey (2000) found that average spending
of visiting boaters was £66 per night, including berthing fees, retail, food and drink and other shopping (or £53
if excluding industry related expenditure). This suggests some consistency between study findings and would
suggest that an assumption of £50 spend per night per visiting boater is fair.
Conwy
Unfortunately it is not possible to determine what proportion of the 10.8 million UK coastal boating trips15
involved an overnight stay. However the case studies in this study reported a total of 190,000 visitor nights per
annum. These case studies provide 10.2% of the 48,600 coastal marina berths in the UK and extrapolating
these findings estimates the total number of overnight visitors to be 1.9 million. Multiplying this estimate by
the average expenditure of £50 per person per night, suggests an estimated expenditure relating to overnight
coastal boating trips of approximately £93 million, as shown in Table 3.8.
Tollesbury
Port Hamble
Ramsgate
Port Solent
East Cowes
Table 3.8: Expenditure Relating to Day and Overnight Visits to Coastal Marinas
Mylor
Jersey
4.2
Adding the £93 million overnight visitors’ expenditure to the £121 million day visitors’ expenditure provides a
total boating visitors’ expenditure of £214 million. The employment impact of this visitor expenditure relating
to coastal marinas can be estimated using an appropriate ratio. Based on the assumption that £40,000 of
tourism spending is required to support one full-time local job, this marina boating visitor expenditure would
support approximately 5,350 jobs in local economies of UK coastal regions.
Where possible, the following case studies are based on local information provided by the marina staff, tenant
businesses and other local stakeholders. However, where it was not possible to obtain such information, the
analysis has made a number of assumptions, described below:
•
Turnover and employment estimates for marine businesses have been derived from the assumption that one FTE
job generates £80,000 of turnover. It has also been assumed that each £1 of turnover generates £0.50 of GVA.
The above analysis relates to the number of visits and expenditures of boating visitors and boating trips.
However, there is a lack of survey evidence relating to non-boating marina visitors and expenditures. This is
therefore an area where the case studies seek to provide evidence at a local level for different types of marina.
•
For tourism jobs, it is assumed that £40,000 of tourism spending is required to support one full-time job. Applying
a typical local income multiplier of 0.3 provides an estimate of the GVA supported by this tourism spending.
•
An estimated 35% of turnover of marine businesses is spent on purchased goods and services, and 33% of
this is typically spent in the local economy, based on the findings from the case study marinas.
14 Scottish Enterprise and Highlands & Islands Enterprise (June 2006) Sailing in the Clyde Estuary: The Potential for Future Development (by McKenzie Wilson)
34
Assumptions
15 BMF, MCA, RNLI, RYA sponsored by Sunsail Watersports and Leisure Participation Survey 2006 (by Arkenford)
35
•
Further jobs and income are supported as a result of expenditures by suppliers (indirect effects) and
employees (induced effects). The overall value of the indirect and induced effect can be estimated by
applying a simple multiplier. A typical local multiplier for indirect and induced effects is 0.3: i.e. a further 0.3
local jobs are supported for each direct job, and a further £0.3 of GVA per £1 of GVA supported directly.
4.3
Jersey Harbours Case Study
4.3.1
Background and History
4.3.3
Demand for Marina Berths
Jersey Harbours currently has no vacant marina berths, and has significant waiting lists for marina berths (295)
and moorings (154). The marinas have excess demand for all berth sizes from less than 8 metres to greater
than 14 metres. The waiting lists have decreased in size because Jersey Harbours is now charging a £50
deposit to register on the waiting lists. The length of waiting lists varies depending on the size of berth, and
potential customers are likely to have to wait between six months and three years, with the longest waits for
the larger berths.
Jersey Harbours operates three marinas in St Helier Harbour and has been awarded the TYHA Five Gold Anchor
award. The marinas are owned by the States of Jersey and include Elizabeth Marina, St Helier Marina and La
Collette Yacht Basin. Jersey Harbours also operates and manages the port of St Helier, through which 98% of
goods arrive on the island, the coastguard service and the British Ships Register.
Jersey is also experiencing increased demand for larger berths and an increase in average boat lengths. The
average boat has increased over the last few years from 8-10 metres to 10-12 metres.
The majority of visiting craft are from France. The marina staff and tenants feel there is a significant
opportunity to attract more visitors from the UK market. Fuel and berthing fees are relatively cheap on Jersey,
while the introduction of cheap flights to many regional airports in the UK, should help to make Jersey more
attractive and accessible to non-Jersey residents. UK visitors are higher value customers than those from France
and are likely to spend more money in the wider economy.
Figure 4.2: St Helier Marina, Jersey
4.3.4
Barriers and Constraints
Jersey faces a number of barriers and issues that are restricting the growth and development of the coastal
marina sector including:
4.3.2
•
An insufficient number of marina berths to meet demand from berth-holders and visiting boats. Jersey has
excess demand for all sizes of berths.
•
The lack of available berths of the right size, i.e. for larger vessels, is reported to be restricting sales of new
boats and brokers are increasingly having to purchase trade berths to facilitate and maintain sales.
•
A lack of marine leisure opportunities on the marina site and a need to develop such facilities to increase
the offer for visitors and locals. Many stakeholders would like to see more of a marina village atmosphere
with promenades and harbourside bars and restaurants.
•
Increasing boat sizes above and beyond those that the marina was initially designed and built to
accommodate. There is now a need to reconfigure marina layouts to accommodate more, larger vessels,
perhaps alongside the introduction of a dry stack facility to serve the smaller boats.
•
A lack of hard standing areas around the harbour. Although the harbour provides boat lifting services and
is able to accommodate approximately 120 boats out of the water, a survey of harbour users (undertaken
by First Research in 2005) suggested there was concern about the capacity and quality of the hard standing.
•
Environmental and heritage issues complicate future developments around the island. For example, much
of the Jersey coast has SSSI designation.
•
The harbour has 40 different tenant businesses associated with the provision of services to the marina and marina
customers, as well as offices, warehousing and residential property. La Collette Yacht Basin has full tidal access,
while access to Elizabeth and St Helier Marinas is only possible three hours either side of high tide and both have
sills to retain water in the Marinas at low tides. La Collette Yacht Basin was the first of the three marinas to open
in the mid 1970s, followed by St Helier Marina in 1980, and Elizabeth Marina more recently in 1998.
The large tidal range in Jersey adds to the cost of marina developments. The tidal range in Jersey can
exceed 12 metres, which creates additional requirements such as the need for sill gates, lock gates, deeper
marina basins and harbour walls.
•
The costs of development are relatively high on Jersey as a result of being an island economy where
materials need to be shipped in from elsewhere, while land prices and wages are also relatively high. This
can add significant costs, relative to a similar development on the UK mainland.
Facilities
•
Conflicting harbour side uses. The harbour has been developed through a number of different phases,
which has caused difficulties in terms of implementing spatial planning for the different types of facilities on
site. The harbourside currently comprises a range of commercial and leisure facilities with potentially
conflicting uses and users, all interspersed throughout the site.
•
There is a general feeling that there is a lack of understanding of what the marine leisure industry
contributes to the Island economy. This has led to Jersey Harbours participation in this study.
•
The town centre is separated from the marina by a main road, which provides a barrier to residents and
non-boating visitors from accessing the harbourside. Long term planning is addressing this issue.
•
Jersey faces competition from Guernsey, which benefits from being closer to the UK.
The three marinas in Jersey provide a combined capacity of 1,050 marina berths. These include 80 dedicated
visitor berths in addition to 5 alongside pontoons where up to 300 visiting boats can be ‘rafted’ alongside each
other. Jersey Harbours also provides approximately 1,000 moorings in nine parish harbours. La Collette Yacht
Basin has approximately 100 berths and is used as a holding area for boats waiting to access the other marinas,
for example, at low tides. St Helier Marina has more than 200 berths, while Elizabeth Marina is the largest
marina with approximately 600 berths. Additional holding berths are provided by No. 4 & No. 5 Pontoons.
Jersey Harbours operates the marina berths, moorings, two boat hoists (16 and 65 tonnes), pump-out facilities,
car park, launderette, toilet and shower blocks. Each marina has its own facilities block. Jersey Harbours has
recently invested in a new
25 tonne boat hoist, due for delivery in November, to replace the existing 16 tonne hoist and meet increasing
consumer demand for the hoisting and servicing of larger boats.
A wide range of additional services are provided by 40 tenant businesses, which include brokers, dealers,
chandlers, charter companies, marine engineers, boat repair and maintenance businesses, sail makers, fuel
providers, cafés and a maritime museum.
36
4.3.5
Proposed Developments
Jersey has a highly successful economy. Its strong, internationally competitive financial services industry helps to
ensure a high standard of living, which is indicated by a relatively high GVA per head and low level of
unemployment.
37
The States of Jersey government wants to achieve real economic growth of at least 2% per annum through
productivity improvements and diversification from lower value to higher value jobs, with minimal increases to
the workforce through inward migration. It has identified tourism, including marine leisure, as a sector with
potential to add greater value through diversification and a reallocation of resources. We have taken the
opportunity to consult with The States of Jersey to gain their insight into the economy and discuss the figures
presented in the following sections.
This suggests that the core marina business, the Jersey Registry and related tenants employ a total of 177
relevant FTEs.
4.3.8
The total marine leisure turnover of Jersey Harbours is £2.6 million. This includes turnover from the three
marinas, boat parks, boat lifts, moorings and also from Jersey Harbours Registry operations. The income from
the Registry is just over £100,000.
The regeneration of the waterfront, and the proposed East of Albert development, will drive this added value.
The plans aim to create closer links between the town and the marinas, as well as develop facilities for berthholders and visiting yachtsmen, to attract non-boating leisure visitors onto the site. This represents a significant
opportunity given the high value visitors to Jersey and the high earning residents, working in the growing
financial services industry. The key concepts currently under discussion in the East of Albert plan and the EDAW
town regeneration plan include:
4.3.6
•
Sinking the road separating the marinas and the town to provide a physical link between the two.
•
The development of harbourside leisure facilities, including bars and restaurants, in a new quayside ‘alfresco
area’, and visitor attractions.
•
Increased provision of premises for marine industries, including a ‘yacht re-fit business park’.
•
The development of on-site property for office and residential uses.
•
The potential to develop the dry harbours into marinas to increase the capacity of marina berths.
•
The introduction of a dry stack facility to serve smaller boats and enable the reconfiguration of berths in
Elizabeth and St Helier Marinas to concentrate on larger boats.
•
Improvements to the layout of the harbour to separate commercial port operations from marine leisure
activities.
•
Jersey Harbours is constantly looking at new concepts and innovative solutions. For example, Jersey
Harbours is currently researching the feasibility of introducing a Rota Dock system (a secure, indoor, dry
storage system, which uses around half the space of dry stack systems).
Boats and Visitors
Jersey Harbours does not monitor the frequency of boat usage by berth-holders. An annual total has been
estimated based on average boat usage at the other case study marinas in peak and off peak seasons,
assuming 4 months at the peak season rate and 8 months at the off peak rate for Jersey.
Jersey Harbours does collect data on visiting vessels. In 2006, Jersey received 40,860 overnight visiting
yachtsmen, based on 14,834 visiting vessel nights and an average of 2.75 people per vessel. The number of
day visitors has been assumed to be 5% of the overnight visitor total. The results of this analysis of users and
visitors are presented in Table 4.1.
Financial Information
The associated marine leisure wages total £666,000 and expenditure on goods and services totals £1.95 million.
These figures include all non-profit making apportioned activities, such as Jersey Coast Guard. Registry
operations account for £143,000 of the wage total and £6,000 of the expenditure on goods and services.
The turnover of tenant businesses is estimated based on information received from a small sample of some of
the larger tenants with an assumption for the remainder that there is £80,000 of turnover per FTE employee.
This provides an estimated turnover for all tenant businesses of £18.3 million.
4.3.9
Value Added
The total value added of the marine leisure business of Jersey Harbours can be estimated from the above data
by subtracting the expenditure on goods and services from total turnover to give £687,000. This is split
between the core marina activities (£592,000) and Registry operations (£95,000).
The estimate of expenditure on goods and services for tenant businesses is based on information received from
some of the larger tenants. It was not possible to obtain information on profits and hence the value added
calculations were made using an expenditure measure only (turnover minus purchases on goods and services).
Analysis of the figures suggests that these represent an upper estimate for the value added of these businesses.
An assumption was made for the remainder that 35% of total turnover is spent on purchased goods and
services. This assumption is based on an average from the other case study marinas in the UK and provides an
estimate of £5.9 million, which can be used to estimate value added for the on-site tenant businesses of £12.5
million. Using this method the total value added figure for the core marina business and related tenants is
estimated at £13.1 million.
Consultation with the Economics Unit of The States of Jersey has provided local information from the period
1998-2001 specifically on the marine industry and more recent data for the whole economy. The data suggest
that over the period 1998 to 2001 the GVA generated by the marine leisure sector in Jersey, accounted for
48.4% of turnover, which supports a lower estimate for the GVA of tenant businesses of £8.9 million. The
general economic environment in Jersey is reported to have changed between 2001 and 2004 from a period of
real economic growth to real decline. Over the past couple of years the economy has returned to real
economic growth and marine leisure offers real potential for further growth.
Following consultation with The States of Jersey, it has been decided to adopt the more conservative estimate
of value added for the core marina business and related tenants of £9.6 million, and the summary table
presents the constituent figures of £592k, 95k and 8,870k respectively.
Table 4.1: Annual Estimates of Marina Users and Visitors in Jersey
Berth-holders
Overnight boating visitors
Day boating visitors
Non-actively boating visitors
Non-boating leisure visitors
Total
Annual Users/Visitors
24,444
40,859
2,043
Unknown
Minimal
67,346
%
36%
61%
3%
NA
NA
100%
The data suggest that Jersey receives a significant number of overnight visiting yachtsmen, accounting for 61%
of all visitors. It was not possible to obtain any information about non-active visiting yachtsmen, while the
number of non-boating leisure visitors was assumed to be minimal, given the lack of leisure facilities on-site.
4.3.7
Employment
The level of employment of the core marina business is difficult to define for the Jersey Harbours team because
many employees work across the port and marina operations. Jersey Harbours have suggested that there are
12 FTEs working solely on marina operations and another 6 FTEs to cover those people working across multiple
areas. This includes 2.5 FTEs employed in Jersey Harbours Registry operations, which does not represent a
core marina activity and is included in this analysis as an additional revenue stream. This provides a core marina
business estimate of 15.5 FTEs.
4.3.10 Expenditures in the Wider Economy
Estimates of visiting yachtsmen berthing in Jersey suggest there are 40,860 overnight visitors and 2,040 day
visitors. Multiplying the number of overnight visitors by the average overnight expenditure of £53.6 (excluding
berthing fees), taken from the Jersey Tourism Visiting Yachts Survey 2003, and multiplying the day visitor total
by the average spend data from Section 3.13 suggests that these visiting yachtsmen will spend £2.2 million in
the local economy each year.
Based on the assumptions discussed in Section 4.2, this visitor expenditure would support approximately 55
tourism jobs and £664,000 GVA in the local economy.
4.3.11 Indirect and Induced Effects
It is estimated that approximately 33% of the value of goods and services purchased by the marina and tenant
businesses is from companies in the local Jersey economy, directly boosting the turnover of local businesses by
£2.6 million. Expenditures by these firms and their employees, as well as by the employees of the marina and
tenant businesses, support further local incomes and employment. It is estimated, based on the assumptions
discussed in Section 4.2, that the indirect and induced effects support a further 53 (177x0.3) FTE jobs and
£2.9m (based on the lower estimate of £9.6mx0.3) GVA in the local economy. The upper estimate suggests
that the indirect and induced effects would support GVA of £3.96 million (£13.1mx0.3).
Jersey Harbours also have the largest number of tenant businesses in the sample, with a total of 40 tenants.
The marina management team and a selection of tenants have estimated that there are 159 FTE jobs in the 40
tenant businesses.
38
39
4.3.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy – GHK analysis
The increase in shore storage and boatyard facilities was intended to stimulate marina activity and use of
throughout the year, thereby reducing the seasonality of employment and turnover at the marina and
generating additional jobs and income.
The redevelopment also included the refurbishment of the on-site holiday accommodation and the
development of new buildings for marina-owned businesses and tenant businesses. The total project cost was
in excess of £4 million and was part-funded by a £835,000 grant from the South West Regional Development
Agency (SWRDA).
A plan of the site is shown in figure 4.4.
Figure 4.4: Plan of the Mylor Yacht Harbour Site
*Lower estimate. N.B. Upper estimate totals £17.8 million based on figures set out in Sections 4.3.9-12
4.3.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that, even considering the lower GVA estimates, the Jersey Harbours marinas have one of
the largest impacts on the local economy of all case study marinas. Jersey Harbours is estimated to support 285
full time equivalent jobs and annual GVA of at least £13.1 million in the local economy (although this may be
as high as £17.8m). This is being driven by:
•
A large number of on-site tenant businesses
•
A large number of visiting yachtsmen spending money in the local economy
However, Jersey faces a number of issues that prevent the harbour from maximising the potential impact of the
marinas. The marinas have considerable potential to generate an even larger impact by accommodating more
boats, developing the marine leisure facilities for visitors, berth-holders and local residents, and thereby
attracting more, higher value visitors and tenant businesses.
4.4
Mylor Yacht Harbour Case Study
4.4.1
Background and History
4.4.2
Mylor Yacht Harbour is located on the Fal Estuary in Cornwall. The site has recently been redeveloped to
increase the number of boats by increasing shore storage capacity, from 200 to 450 boats, and the provision of
marina berths from 10 to 197, at the expense of fewer swinging moorings from 250 down to 230. An area of
land was reclaimed using recycled dredged material to provide the shore storage, as indicated in Figure 4.3,
with an extension to the lay-up area further up the valley.
Facilities
Mylor Yacht Harbour currently comprises 197 marina berths and 230 swinging moorings, approximately 60% of
which are leased to local residents. The remaining 40% live outside of Cornwall and the marina plays a key
role in attracting these people to Cornwall to spend money in the local economy.
Table 4.2: Mylor Marina Berths and Moorings
Figure 4.3: Aerial Photograph of Mylor Yacht Harbour
The marina business owns and provides many of the facilities and services available on site, which include dry
storage, berths, moorings, boat hoist, boat repair, marine engineering, fuel, utilities, car parking, holiday
accommodation, launderette, showers and toilets. These are supplemented by 14 tenant businesses including a
chandlery, yacht broker, sailing schools, boat charter, café, restaurant and bar, additional specialist boat repair
and maintenance, and a yacht club. Other services are provided by local contractors based off-site, who come
onto the marina site and work directly for boating customers.
Extension to lay-up in the valley
4.4.3
Reclaimed land in the old quay
40
Demand for Marina Berths
Mylor currently has no vacancies and has significant waiting lists for marina berths and moorings, with 200
people on each. Although waiting lists provide an imprecise measure of demand (see Section 2.5 of the report
for an explanation), Mylor Yacht Harbour does believe it has excess demand for marina berths for all boat sizes
from less than 8 metres to more than 16 metres. This lack of available berths is a key issue for boat sales
because customers will not buy a boat if they have nowhere to keep it and this issue was raised by Ancasta
who have a brokerage on site.
41
The growth of motor boats relative to sail has been less marked in Mylor and Cornwall than elsewhere in the
country. This is considered due to the strong sailing culture and community in Cornwall, where boaters typically
have more leisure time to indulge in their passion. However there has been some shift from sail towards power
boat ownership, as sail boats used to account for 60% of new boat sales in Cornwall, but this has now fallen
to around 40%.
The redevelopment of Mylor also successfully increased wages of Mylor Yacht Harbour staff. The average
monthly wage increased by 59% between 1999 and 2004, which is 35 percentage points higher than the
national average wage inflation over that period. The marina currently pays £1.3 million in wages to staff.
Table 4.4: Turnover Estimates at Mylor Yacht Harbour
Mylor has also experienced some growth in boat sizes and average boat lengths at Mylor have increased from
8.6 metres in 2001 to a current average of 10.5 metres. This does not have significant implications for berthing
at Mylor because it is relatively easy for Mylor to alter pontoon lengths in line with demand. However if the
trend for larger boats continued, then Mylor would have to consider introducing a new hoist capable of lifting
larger boats.
Mylor Yacht Harbour has no plans to expand the marina at the moment, but believes there is sufficient demand
to fill at least another 50 berths. However, Mylor would be hesitant to add additional marina berths because of
the prospect of the lengthy process to gain planning and environmental approval.
4.4.4
Barriers and Constraints
The redevelopment of Mylor faced a number of environmental and planning barriers, which were complicated
by the fact that the site and surrounding area included Grade I and II listed buildings, an Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty (AONB), and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). It took 18 months to overcome these
barriers, which required significant time and resource to complete all applications, environmental studi42es and
impact assessments. The redevelopment also included environmental management measures such as sourcing
wood for the pontoons from sustainable sources, and recycling the dredged materials to use as a building
material in the reclamation of land required to increase the shore storage capacity. As a direct result the marina
won a British Environmental Award in 2001.
4.4.5
An analysis of expenditures by type of user/visitor suggests that the average expenditure per boat at Mylor has
been estimated at approximately £10,700 per annum. Overnight visitors and day visitors spend approximately
£136 per person per visit. Non-active boaters and non-boating leisure visitors spend an average of £53 per
person per visit to Mylor.
Boats and Visitors
The marina estimates that it receives 42,000 separate visits per year from boating users and visitors. The data
indicates that around 1,300 people use or visit Mylor Yacht Harbour each week in peak season, and this
number falls to around 300 in the off season.
The vast majority (64%) are annual and seasonal berth-holders, while people aboard visiting boats account for
20%. Only 16% of marina visitors do not have a boat at the marina, which also reflects the relatively remote
location and the lack of passing trade.
Table 4.3: Annual Estimates of Mylor Users and Visitors
4.4.8
Value Added
Estimates provided by Mylor Yacht Harbour and tenant businesses suggest that 35% of total turnover is spent
on purchased goods and services (£1.9 million per annum) and that value added amounts to £3.5 million per
annum.
4.4.9
Expenditures in the Wider Economy
Mylor Yacht Harbour has a fairly remote location and the vast majority of visitors therefore tend to stay on site,
either in the holiday accommodation or on board a boat. The remote location suggests that off-site
expenditures by marina users are likely to be small. Instead on-site expenditure supports employment and sales
for local businesses.
4.4.10 Indirect and Induced Effects
4.4.6
Employment
The marina at Mylor now provides work for 136 full time equivalent (FTE) employees in total, including those
employed by the marina (54 FTEs) and all on-site tenant businesses (82 FTEs). In addition, there are currently 74
individual contractor businesses cleared to work on the Mylor site and the marina generates significant income
for these contractors.
Prior to redevelopment, there were just 76 FTE employees on site, while the number of contractors has
increased from 60 since 2004, demonstrating the success of increasing the shore storage, boatyard and
associated facilities.
4.4.7
It is estimated from the above that approximately 33% of the value of goods and services purchased by the
marina and tenant businesses is from local companies, directly boosting the turnover of local businesses in
Cornwall by £630,000. Expenditures by these firms and their employees, as well as by the employees of the
marina and tenant businesses, support further local incomes and employment. The assumptions discussed in
Section 4.2 suggest that these indirect and induced effects support a further 41 (136x0.3) FTE jobs and £1.05m
(£3.5mx0.3) GVA in the local economy.
4.4.11 Wider Impacts
Mylor Yacht Harbour is overlooked by a small number of properties on the surrounding hillsides. It is suggested
that the prices of these properties have increased ahead of the market as a result of their location and marina
views. Interviews at Mylor Yacht Harbour suggested that the prices of some local houses, overlooking the
marina, have increased more than threefold between 1997 and 2006.
Financial Information
The total turnover of the Mylor Yacht Harbour site is estimated to be £5.4 million, with the marina itself having
a current annual turnover of £2.8 million.
This total figure for the site is significantly higher than the £1.8 million turnover estimate in 1999. This
represents an overall growth in turnover of 14% per annum, and a real growth of 12% per annum after
accounting for inflation. The majority of this turnover is generated by the boatyard facilities, provided by the
marina and tenant businesses, (£2.25 million) and berthing, mooring and shore storage (£1.2 million). These
figures clearly demonstrate the strength of the vision behind the redevelopment of the marina.
42
43
4.4.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy
Figure 4.5: Aerial View of East Cowes Marina
Land Previously Sold for Housing Development
Pub Plot
New Tenant Building and Car Parks
New Marina Office
Land Previously Sold for Housing Development
* Excludes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina, but who come on to the site to work on the boats of Mylor Yacht Harbour customers.
4.4.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that the operation of Mylor Yacht Harbour supports at least 177 full time equivalent jobs
and annual GVA of £4.55 million in the local economy. Mylor has achieved significant growth as a result of the
redevelopment of the marina site, which has been driven by:
•
Increasing the number of marina berths
•
Improving the quality and convenience of the Mylor offer
•
Increasing shore storage capacity to reduce seasonality of income and make more effective use of the onsite boatyard facilities.
Dean & Reddyhoff have undertaken a significant redevelopment of the site, installing new pontoons,
reconfiguring and extending the previous layout, laying tarmac across the site, and building the new marina
office, toilets and shower block, as well as a building with four units for tenant businesses. Prior to Dean &
Reddyhoff purchasing the marina, a significant proportion of the site was sold to Barratt Homes for a largescale housing development, which was started in 1998. At an early stage Dean & Reddyhoff sold a prime plot
of waterside land for a pub development, to provide refreshment and restaurant facilities.
The work was completed in 2004 and the marina was officially re-opened by Ellen MacArthur in 2005. Dean &
Reddyhoff have since re-purchased the pub that was developed on the site and have found a new tenant in
Coastal Inns and Taverns. The pub had previously been run by Whitbread as a Brewer’s Fayre, which tended to
target the residents of East Cowes and its environs, rather than the yachtsmen. The new tenants are
considered a good fit with the marina and marina customers, as they have considerable experience of operating
pubs in waterside locations and are keen to link with the marina in supporting maritime events.
The marina has excess demand for marina berths and has potential for further growth by adding more marina
berths to meet increasing customer demands. However, the planning and environmental constraints faced
during the recent redevelopment project are expected to provide a number of barriers to any future
developments.
4.5
East Cowes Marina Case Study
4.5.1
Background and History
4.5.2
Facilities
East Cowes Marina has 390 marina berths, including 150 dedicated visitor berths. The marina has no moorings
or shore storage capacity. Whilst around 65% of the berth-holders have an Isle of Wight postcode,
approximately one-third of these have their main residence on the mainland.
East Cowes Marina is located on a sheltered stretch of the Medina River, upstream from the Cowes chain ferry
and Red Funnel ferry terminal. The marina is popular amongst families and cruising parties, while the racing
fraternity tend to berth at one of the marinas in West Cowes further downstream. Dean & Reddyhoff
purchased the site in 1998, which was previously a family-owned marina, while the riverbed is owned by The
Crown Estate. A lack of investment had allowed the marina to deteriorate into quite a poor state, and parts of
the marina layout had been deemed unsafe and closed by the local council.
Dean and Reddyhoff manages the marina operation, berthing, access to the water, utilities, car parking,
launderette, toilet and shower block. There are no boatyard or boat lifting facilities at East Cowes Marina, but
there are five tenant businesses, including the pub, a chandlery, a sailing school/charter company, a yacht racing
school and a brokerage.
4.5.3
Demand for Marina Berths
As discussed above, the majority of berth-holders are either island residents, or own property on the island, and
hence most of the marina’s long term clients come from a limited population and small geographical area.
Interestingly, East Cowes Marina has excess demand from smaller craft requiring berths of less than 12 metres,
but this is not so for berths larger than 12 metres. This is in contrast to most of the other marinas that
responded to the survey of TYHA members discussed in Section 2.5, which reported excess demand for larger
berths. This is partly due to the fact that the marina was reconfigured recently, to meet the growing demand
for larger berths. East Cowes has also taken the unusual decision to turn away some larger craft in order to
provide sufficient berthing for visiting craft in the high season.
The availability of berths at East Cowes ensures a strong link between brokers and the marina. There are
currently 20 vacant berths at the marina. The lack of available berths, for example on the south coast of
England, provides an opportunity for East Cowes to gain additional berth-holders and for brokers to achieve
sales of new boats.
44
45
East Cowes has reported that their experience suggests that the trend of increased demand for larger berths
has now eased. East Cowes also believes that more owners of larger boats are now choosing to berth their
boats in marinas on the Mediterranean as cheap flights make these locations more accessible. Power boats are
more common than sail boats in Cowes, accounting for 60-65% of all boats.
4.5.4
Barriers and Constraints
4.5.7
The total turnover of the East Cowes Marina site is estimated to be in the region of £2.6 million, including
tenant businesses. The core marina business has a turnover of £950,000 and more than 90% of income is
related to berthing fees. The remainder is split between fuel sales and tenant rents.
4.5.8
East Cowes Marina has faced a number of barriers and issues that have restricted its development:
•
•
•
4.5.5
The increasing cost of dredging is a significant issue and could provide a major disincentive to expansion in
the future. Obtaining a dredging licence is also considered a key issue. The marina understands that there
will eventually be problems further upstream if dredged material is continually removed from the river, but
there are currently no alternative, widely accepted systems in place to enable the dredged material to be
taken back upstream.
East Cowes town is currently perceived as a barrier to attracting high-value visiting boats to the marina.
The town is considered a poor relation to West Cowes and the retail and leisure offer lacks quality.
However SEEDA’s large scale regeneration programme for the town centre and adjacent waterfront south of
the chain ferry is expected to rectify this situation, making East Cowes a destination in its own right. The
marina has made its own contribution to improve the leisure offer in East Cowes by purchasing the on-site
pub and installing a new tenant.
There is a considerable opportunity to regenerate East Cowes town, which has some advantages over West
Cowes in terms of having an accessible waterfront, with open views across the harbour and the Solent.
Barratt Homes is building 1,000 new homes in and around East Cowes. Whilst these developments are
largely estate style housing, the increase in the resident population will help to sustain the retail businesses
in the town and improve the appearance and enable the development of the town centre and waterfront.
Boats and Visitors
East Cowes Marina has a significant visiting customer base as the Isle of Wight, and Cowes harbour in
particular, are popular destinations for visitors. Approximately one-third of the marina’s turnover comes from
the visitors. The marina currently has a tenant Water Taxi service, which provides transport to West Cowes,
although the majority of visitors are keen to walk to West Cowes via the chain ferry, which is free to cyclists
and pedestrians.
Table 4.5 shows the significant number of boaters visiting East Cowes relative to berth-holders. The high
number of leisure visitors shows that there is local demand for quality leisure venues, such as the on-site
“Lifeboat” pub.
Financial Information
Value Added
35% of total turnover has been estimated as being spent on purchased goods and services. This suggests that
£910,000 is being spent on goods and services per annum. The value added by the marina site is therefore
estimated at £1.7 million per annum.
4.5.9
Expenditures in the Wider Economy
The marina estimates that an average of 75% of visiting boaters will leave the marina site during their visit and
head into town or over to West Cowes, which equates to 24,180 overnight visitors and 2,262 day visitors per
annum. To account for this expenditure in the wider economy, these visitor estimates can be multiplied by the
average spend data from Section 3.13. This suggests that visiting boaters spend £1.2 million in the local
economy but away from the marina site. This visitor expenditure is estimated to support 31 tourism jobs and
£360,000 GVA in the local economy.
4.5.10 Indirect and Induced Effects
It is estimated that approximately 50% of the value of goods and services purchased by the marina and tenant
businesses is from companies in the local Isle of Wight economy, directly boosting the turnover of local
businesses by £455,000. Expenditures by these firms and their employees, as well as by the employees of the
marina and tenant businesses, support further local incomes and employment. Applying the assumptions
described in Section 4.2 suggests that these indirect and induced effects support a further 6 (21x0.3) FTE jobs
and £505,000 (£1.7mx0.3) GVA in the local Isle of Wight economy.
4.5.11 Wider Impacts
East Cowes Marina is likely to have had a major impact on local property values on the Berkeley Homes
residential development surrounding the marina site, but it has not been possible to quantify this impact during
this study.
4.5.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy
Table 4.5: Annual Estimates of East Cowes Users and Visitors
4.5.6
Employment
East Cowes Marina provides work for an estimated 21 full time equivalent (FTE) employees, including those
employed by the marina and all on-site tenant businesses. The core marina operation is relatively small with
just 6 FTE employees. The pub is significantly the largest employer on the site, as the brokerage, chandlery and
sailing school/charter company are all relatively small operations with no more than 3 FTEs employed by each
business. The sailing school uses freelance trainers on a regular basis but they are treated as a service bought in
by the company for the purposes of this analysis.
A number of contractor businesses work on-site at East Cowes Marina, generating further income for these
contractors and the local economy. Contractors earn considerable income from East Cowes customers because
there are no repair or maintenance tenants on site. East Cowes operates an open policy to contractors, to
provide berth-holders with an unrestricted choice and facilitate fair competition between contractors. All
contractors are required to have liability insurance, and sign on and off the premises, but it has not been
possible to estimate the average number of contractors on site at any one time for this analysis.
46
* Excludes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina, but who come on to the site to work on the boats of East Cowes Marina customers.
4.5.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that East Cowes Marina supports 58 full time equivalent (FTE) jobs and annual GVA of
£2.5 million in the local economy. East Cowes Marina has successfully increased its visitor numbers and income
year on year by providing high quality shore-side facilities and dedicated visitor berths to accommodate the
requirements of visiting yachtsmen. The marina has a relatively large impact in terms of visitor expenditure in
the local economy but, with the exception of the on-site pub, this expenditure is largely benefiting the local
economy in West Cowes. However East Cowes Marina is currently working with the relevant authorities to use
the marina and the “Lifeboat” pub as a vehicle to facilitate and promote the regeneration of East Cowes.
47
4.6
Port Hamble Marina Case Study
4.6.1
Background and History
Port Hamble has reported seeing a change in demand trends from motor boats back to sail again. This is
considered to be because the surge of ‘new’ money into the boating industry has begun to slow more recently,
while the impending loss of the derogation on red diesel increasing cost of fuel could also explain the switch.
Port Hamble is an MDL Marina and has been awarded the Five Gold Anchor quality award. It is situated on the
River Hamble and is a popular marina, particularly amongst yacht racing enthusiasts. The sheltered waters of
the Solent offer excellent conditions for sailing and yacht racing events and Port Hamble is ideally located to
provide quick and convenient access. The strong yacht racing heritage has been developed over a number of
years and the marina has a history of refitting and maintaining racing yachts. As well as the facilities and
services available on site, boaters are attracted to the marina by the neighbouring boatyard and the pubs,
restaurants and shops at Hamble village, just a few minutes walk from the Marina.
4.6.4
The development of Port Hamble Marina and the neighbouring Hamble Yacht Services is restricted by the lack
of available land and limited car parking on site. Several local marinas, including Hamble Point and Saxon
Wharf, are introducing dry stack facilities and Port Hamble is likely to lose some customers with smaller boats as
a result. Port Hamble could install a similar system but would have to sacrifice valuable car parking spaces to
do so. If the marina does lose smaller boats or introduce a dry stack facility, then the layout is likely to need
reconfiguring to enable the marina to concentrate on meeting the growing demand for larger berths.
Figure 4.6: Aerial View of Port Hamble Marina
MDL does not have any current plans to expand the berthing capacity at Port Hamble, but any future plans to
expand the marina could face a major obstacle. Hamble Yacht Services currently wants to extend its own
berthing further out into the river but the local authority is blocking the plans, citing navigational issues, despite
the Harbourmaster saying it would be safe to do so. Hamble Yacht Services suggested there is a need to make
local authorities more aware of the local benefits of marinas and the marine sector in order to change
perceptions and remove barriers to development.
Hamble Yacht Services
Tenant Units
Barriers and Constraints
4.6.5
Boats and Visitors
Port Hamble Marina is located on a cul-de-sac with limited parking, particularly for non-boaters. However,
other than the resident chandler, there are currently no retail or leisure facilities to attract non-boaters on to the
site and the number of leisure visitors is considered minimal. The marina has plans to secure a pub tenant in
the near future to increase the leisure offer to boaters, and encourage non-boating leisure visitors to come on
to the site.
Port Hamble Pontoons
Berkeley Homes Development
On the other hand, the retail and leisure offer of the local Hamble village is a significant attraction for Port
Hamble berth-holders and visitors and the majority of visiting customers are likely to venture into the village
during their stay. Many of the local businesses in Hamble village are dependent upon the trade from visitors to
Port Hamble and the other local marinas.
The tidal stretches of the Hamble riverbed are owned by The Crown Estate. MDL purchased the Port Hamble
site in 1987, which began operating as a marina around 1960. MDL has made a number of changes to the
site, including the expansion and development of new buildings to accommodate the marina and tenant
businesses, while Berkeley Homes completed a residential development adjacent to the marina in the late
1990s, as shown in Figure 4.6. There have been very few changes on the water, other than the refurbishment
of pontoons. MDL is currently constructing a mixed-use development on the marina site, incorporating 4 new
tenant premises and 4 private apartments. The workspace will provide new premises for Ancasta, which will
free up their current premises to develop a pub/restaurant to improve the on-site leisure facilities.
4.6.2
Table 4.6: Annual Estimates of Port Hamble Users and Visitors
Facilities
There are 310 marina berths at Port Hamble, including 27 berths leased on a long-term basis. The remainder of
the berths are let on an annual basis and there are no dedicated visitor berths. The marina has no moorings but
includes alongside berths, finger berths and bays which can be used for rafting to meet demand from visitors.
Visitors also make use of vacant marina berths when berth-holders are away. These include a significant number
of charter boats berthed at Port Hamble which are usually away from the marina at weekends, when visitor
demand is greatest. Berth-holders tend to live all over the South Coast and London and South East regions and
two-thirds of berth-holders are thought likely to live outside Hampshire. Port Hamble therefore plays a key role
in attracting these people to the local area to spend money in the local economy.
The marina is very focused on boating visitors and estimates that it receives approximately 75,000 separate visits
per year, accounting for 89% of all visitors to the marina, as shown in Table 4.6. This is significantly higher
than the estimated 6,200 visits from berth-holders each year, highlighting the significance of visiting boaters for
the marina. The marina estimates that it receives only 2,300 non-active boating visitors each year, reflecting the
lack of passing trade.
4.6.6
The Port Hamble Marina site provides work for an estimated 55 full time equivalent (FTE) employees in total,
including those employed by the marina (9 FTEs) and all on-site tenant businesses (46 FTEs). Hamble Yacht
Services and its tenants provide employment for an estimated 170 full time staff. These businesses and
employees are not directly linked to the facility at Port Hamble and have said they would operate even if the
marina was not located there. However Port Hamble Marina is likely to provide a significant customer base for
Hamble Yacht Services and its tenants.
MDL operates the marina, fuel, utilities, car park, launderette, toilet and shower block. Additional services are
provided by the six tenant businesses, which include three charter companies, two brokers and a chandlery. A
significant boatyard operation operated by Hamble Yacht Services (and including a further 15 tenant businesses)
neighbours Port Hamble Marina, providing easy access to these services for Port Hamble berth-holders.
4.6.3
Demand for Marina Berths
Port Hamble currently has a small number of vacancies (12), but also has a small waiting list (also 12) for larger
marina berths. The marina has excess demand for the larger berths of 10-12 metres and more than 14 metres,
but not for smaller sizes. Port Hamble typically has a few vacancies, which is considered to be a direct result of
the flexibility inherent in MDL’s customer refund policy – something which is relatively unusual in this industry.
Although there is a relative shortage of available berths at Port Hamble, the on-site brokers do not consider this
to be a major barrier as most new boat sales go elsewhere, although typically remain on the South Coast/South
West. Furthermore, the majority of second-hand boats brokered are sold with the berth at Port Hamble
included as part of the package.
48
Employment
4.6.7
Financial Information
The total turnover of the Port Hamble Marina site is estimated to be £8.25 million. The majority of this
turnover is generated by the yacht brokerage tenants (£3 million), charter companies (£2.4 million) and the
berthing fees of the core marina business (£1.5 million).
The core marina business has a current turnover £2.3 million. In a similar trend to the other case study marinas,
berthing fees provide the majority (66%) of income. Fuel and other retail provide 27% of income with tenant
rent and other commercial income providing the remaining 7%.
49
The marina pays almost £200,000 per annum in staff wages, while expenditures on goods and services total
£450,000 per annum. Approximately two-thirds of goods and services are purchased within the county of
Hampshire, although only about 10% is sourced from the local area. The local chandler and brokerage
company were more likely to source goods and services nationally rather than locally or within the county.
4.6.8
4.6.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that the Port Hamble Marina supports 170 full time equivalent jobs and annual GVA of
£8.8 million in the local economy. This represents a significant impact and is being driven by:
Value Added
Estimates provided by Port Hamble Marina and tenant businesses suggest that 35% of total turnover is spent on
purchased goods and services (£2.9 million per annum) and that value added amounts to £5.35 million per annum.
4.6.9
Expenditures in the Wider Economy
Hamble Yacht Services has estimated the turnover of its own site (including all tenant businesses) to total £17
million. Approximately 70% of its customers are reported to come from outside of the Southampton
conurbation but the close proximity of Port Hamble Marina would suggest that users of the marina are likely to
be a significant source of income for the boatyard. We consider it fair to assume that Port Hamble customers
provides at least 10% of the turnover of the Hamble Yacht Services site, accounting for £1.7 million and
supporting 17 FTE jobs (10% of the workforce). Assuming that each £1 of turnover generates £0.50 of GVA,
this suggests that these expenditures directly support GVA of £850,000 among supplier businesses.
•
A high number of visiting boaters
•
A high quality and improving offer, including the marina services, neighbouring boatyard and leisure
facilities in Hamble village
•
Some significant and successful tenant businesses.
Although there are no current plans to increase the provision of berths at the marina, Port Hamble is likely to
face a number of barriers to future expansion, such as the lack of parking spaces for customers and planning
restrictions blocking any proposed extension of berthing layouts on the river.
4.7
Port Solent Marina Case Study
4.7.1
Background and History
Port Solent Marina is a Five Gold Anchor marina located at the north of Portsmouth Harbour. The marina is
operated by Premier Marinas and has recently celebrated its 21st birthday. Premier Marinas leases the site from
Portsmouth City Council. Port Solent is a destination marina, providing a wide range of leisure services, marine
services, residential property, and employment space, in addition to more than 800 marina berths, of which half
are owned by local residents. Access to the marina is only possible via a lock, which provides 24 hour access at
any state of the tide.
The visiting boaters berthing at Port Hamble marina comprise 62,400 overnight visitors and 12,000 day visitors.
Multiplying these figures by the average spend data from Section 3.13 suggests that these visiting boaters will
spend £3.25 million in the local economy. Based on the assumptions discussed in Section 4.2, this visiting
boater expenditure would support approximately 81 tourism jobs and £975,000 GVA in the local economy.
4.6.10 Indirect and Induced Effects
Figure 4.7: Port Solent Marina
Approximately 33% of the value of goods and services purchased by the marina and tenant businesses is
estimated to be from companies in the local Hampshire economy, directly boosting the turnover of local
businesses by £1 million. Expenditures by these firms and their employees, as well as by the employees of the
marina and tenant businesses, support further local incomes and employment. It is estimated, based on the
assumptions discussed in Section 4.2, that the indirect and induced effects support a further 17 (55x0.3) FTE
jobs and £1.6m (£5.35mx0.3) GVA in the local economy.
4.6.11 Wider Impacts
Port Hamble Marina is likely to have had a significant impact on the value of houses on the Berkeley Homes
residential development adjacent to the marina site but it has not been possible to quantify this impact during
this study.
4.6.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy
The site was previously a large landfill site, although the marina basin was created by chalk extraction used in
the construction of the M27. There were a number of proposals for the site including: a centre of excellence
for sport with plans to use the site to host some of the events at the Commonwealth Games; a motorsport
track and venue; as well as a marina.
4.7.2
Facilities
Port Solent has 808 marina berths, which include 400 residential berths owned by many of the waterside
properties at the site. The remaining 408 berths are available to berth-holders and although there are no
dedicated visitor berths at Port Solent, visitors can make use of any vacant marina berths, and the marina never
has to turn visitors away. This system works particularly efficiently at Port Solent because the existence of the
lock means that berth-holders must speak to the marina office when they want to leave the marina, providing
an opportunity for marina staff to ask when the boat will be returning. The marina has no moorings but does
have an outer waiting pontoon, where the resident Sunsail fleet are moored during peak times to create
additional space within the marina for visitors.
* Excludes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina, but who come on to the site to work on the boats of Port Hamble Marina customers.
50
Port Solent has plenty of shore storage space and a capacity of 550 boats. Boats are stored in car parks during
the winter months when there are fewer visitors to the marina and therefore less demand on parking spaces.
This is a relatively unusual position for a coastal marina as many want to create more space for car parking,
shore storage, and/or dry stack facilities. This large capacity for shore storage also helps reduce the seasonality
of the marina site, by providing a large number of boats for the marine tenant businesses to work on over the
winter months.
51
Premier Marinas operates the marina, lock, berths, storage, hoist and crane, fuel, utilities, car park, launderette,
toilet and shower block. Additional services are provided by 27 tenant businesses, which include boat repair,
marine engineering, rigging, fabrication businesses, the largest chandlery in the UK, brokers and dealers,
charters and sea-schools, including the UK headquarters of Sunsail.
4.7.6
The core marina operation at Port Solent has 18 full-time and 12 seasonal employees, totalling 24 FTE jobs. In
addition to these jobs the Marine Superstore chandlery employs 24 FTEs, Abersoch Land and Sea employ 3
FTEs, other tenants employ a further 92 FTEs and Sunsail’s headquarters employs 21 5FTEs. The core marina
business and related tenants therefore support a total of 358 FTE jobs.
Premier Marinas is not the only landlord on site with tenant businesses. The marina site also possesses a multiplex
cinema, a leisure centre, and 24 other tenants, which are primarily restaurants, bars, and retailers. These tenants
and units are managed by the Boardwalk Centre Management Team. The complex attracts more than 3 million
visitors per annum. Although not tenants, the availability of such a wide range of leisure facilities is a significant
attraction for many boaters, hence the reason Port Solent is considered a destination marina. The Boardwalk
tenants themselves benefit from a marina location, and the on-site customer base of affluent consumers.
4.7.3
Demand for Marina Berths
These figures are also supplemented by more than 70 contractor businesses that regularly come on to the
marina site to work on customers’ boats. Port Solent Marina charges these contractors a small daily charge for
coming onto the site and working directly for customers. The number of contractors on-site varies depending
on how long they stay, on average about 15 contractors will check-in with the marina office each day.
4.7.7
The reason for increasing boat sizes is that new boaters are now entering the market at the 12 metre length,
rather than 7 metres, which was the standard ten years ago. This demand is being driven by higher disposable
incomes, with a high proportion of Port Solent berth-holders living within the M25 area.
4.7.5
Boats and Visitors
The Boardwalk attracts three million visitors per annum but it is not possible to determine how many of these
are boaters or non-boaters. The fact that the Boardwalk Centre is not owned by the marina operator means it
should be classed as an on-site, non-tenant business. The presence of the Boardwalk means that most visitor
expenditure is likely to take place on site, because of the range of services it provides and the relative
inaccessibility of other shops, bars and restaurants from Port Solent, particularly for a visiting boater with no
form of road transport.
The estimates of boat use provided by the marina suggest that the marina receives 21,500 visits from berthholders per annum, and 10,500 visits from visiting boaters, all of whom can be assumed to stay overnight given
the long distance visitors will have had to have travelled to get there.
52
•
Property Rental - £750,000
•
Boatyard Income - £500,000
The total turnover of the Port Solent Marina site is estimated to be £19.6 million, based on information
provided by the core marina business and a selection of tenants.
4.7.8
Value Added
The value added by the core marina business is turnover (£4m) less the purchases of goods and services
(£1.1m), which provides an estimate of £2.9 million.
Estimates provided by Port Solent tenant businesses suggest that 35% of total turnover (£15.6m) is spent on
purchased goods and services (£5.5 million per annum) and that value added amounts to £10.1 million per
annum.
Although the large shore storage capacity has many benefits in terms of income for the marina and providers of
repair and maintenance services, it can also present issues and complications, particularly around the
relaunching of so many boats. The whole of March is typically spent just relaunching boats ready for the peak
season.
It would be possible to increase berthing outside the marina lock but this would raise issues concerning
additional dredging. It is reportedly already a struggle to apply for the annual maintenance dredging licence is
necessary to keep the navigational channel from the marina open.
Berthing and storage - £1.8 million
The main purchases are fuel, maintenance of equipment, electricity and security contracts. Two-thirds of the
purchases of the core marina business are from within Hampshire, although only 10% is procured locally.
Barriers and Constraints
Although there is no potential for expansion on the water, the marina would like to be able to undertake
further development on the land. However, this aspiration also faces a number of barriers. It is not possible to
build on the open space beside the marina development because this is designated as public open space and is
a feeding area for overwintering brent geese. Also any further waterside developments would be likely to have
a negative impact on boatyard operations, boat storage capacity, or impact on residents, Sunsail or the
Boardwalk Centre.
•
Total turnover for the core marina business is approximately £4 million. The marina pays £500,000 in wages,
£200,000 in rent to landlords, and £1.1 million on the purchases of goods and services.
Port Solent would like to have more space to be able to provide more, larger berths but is severely restricted by
space. The marina has recently extended two berths to meet the demand for larger berths, and also has the
potential to add six new berths on a linear wall near to the Boardwalk Centre. However, any developments
beyond that are highly unlikely.
The provision of marina berths at Port Solent is completely restricted by physical space because it is a locked
marina with a dock edge and expansion is therefore impossible. Even the reconfiguration of berths, for
example to accommodate larger berths, is very difficult. If the trend for larger boats and berths continues, the
marina might have to consider a large-scale reconfiguration.
Financial Information
The marina site has a very diverse income stream and berthing fees are not as important here as they are at
most other coastal marinas. The largest sources of income for the core marina business are:
Despite currently having 46 available berths, Port Solent is usually fully occupied because of the effectiveness of
the system of using vacant berths for visitors. The available berths are all less than 12 metres in length and the
marina struggles to fill these berths, but has excess demand for all berths larger than 12 metres. There are 15
people on the waiting list for these larger berths, and about 70% of boats on the waiting list are power boats.
4.7.4
Employment
The total value added figure for the core marina business and related tenants is estimated at £13 million.
4.7.9
Expenditures in the Wider Economy
The Port Solent site provides a wide range of facilities and is relatively inaccessible without a car. So it has been
assumed that the expenditure of the 10,500 overnight boating visits takes place on site at the Boardwalk
Centre, using the average spend data from Section 3.13.
Port Solent berth-holders will also spend money in the Boardwalk Centre, which is not included within tenant
businesses. The sailing in the Clyde Estuary report suggests that berth-holders spend £2,000 per annum on
food and drink in their home marina and on trips away. It might therefore be fair to assume that the 808
berth-holders at Port Solent spend £1,000 per annum on food and drink on site (i.e. 50%) at the Boardwalk
Centre. In fact this might be conservative as 400 berth-holders actually live on site. This provides an estimated
total boating expenditure of £1.3 million per annum at the Boardwalk Centre.
This boater expenditure is estimated to support approximately 33 FTE jobs and £399,000 GVA in the local
economy.
4.7.10 Indirect and Induced Effects
It is estimated that approximately 33% of the value of goods and services purchased by the marina and tenant
businesses is from companies in the local Hampshire economy, directly boosting the turnover of local businesses
by £2.2 million. Expenditures by these firms and their employees, as well as by the employees of the marina
and tenant businesses, support further local incomes and employment. Using the assumptions described in
Section 4.2, these indirect and induced effects are estimated to support a further 107 (358x0.3) FTE jobs and
£3.9m (£13mx0.3) GVA in the local economy.
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4.7.11 Wider Impacts
The Port Solent site is a mixed-use site and 84 acres have been used to develop 414 houses and 244
apartments, which are predominantly privately-owned. 70% of these houses are primary dwellings, while 30%
are second homes. The marina location of these properties will place a premium on their values, probably in
the order of 15% over similar properties without a marina view.
4.8
Ramsgate Marina Case Study
4.8.1
Background and History
The Royal Harbour Marina is a Four Gold Anchor marina located in Ramsgate on the Isle of Thanet in Kent.
The Royal Harbour in which the marina is located was granted Royal status in 1821 by King George IV and
remains the only harbour in the UK to have gained this status.
4.7.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy
The marina is owned and run by Thanet District Council as part of the Port of Ramsgate which includes the
harbour, the marina and the ferry terminal. It cannot exactly be identified when boating activity began in
Ramsgate as the harbour has been used for commercial and leisure sailing for centuries, and the use of
Ramsgate as a port began as far back as Roman times.
A major development and upgrade of the Harbour took place in 2000, adding 200 berths and providing new
amenities and security improvements together with additional car parking.
Figure 4.8: Ramsgate marina
* Excludes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina, but who come on to the site to work on the boats of Port Solent Marina customers.
4.7.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that the Port Solent Marina supports 500 full time equivalent jobs and annual GVA of
£17.4 million in the local economy. This represents a significant impact and is being driven by:
•
A significant number of high value tenants on site
•
A large scale visitor attraction at the Boardwalk Centre
•
A lack of easily accessible off-site spending opportunities, containing expenditures to the site
•
The diverse range of income streams
•
The large shore storage capacity to maintain high numbers of boats at the marina all year round and reduce
seasonality issues.
Ramsgate and the wider Thanet area suffers from some of the worst deprivation in England and unemployment
levels in Thanet are nearly double the South East average (3.5% vs. 1.6%). Thanet is one of only two districts
in the South East with Assisted Area Status to promote the economic development of certain disadvantaged
areas.
The town itself has the highest concentration of listed buildings in the region – 900 in the town and more than
200 surrounding the Royal Harbour Marina. There is a growing café culture concentrated in the centre and on
the seafront that the council is keen to encourage through planning and licensing policies. To the west of the
marina is the Port of Ramsgate RO-RO (Roll-On-Roll-Off) ferry terminal which runs the only cross-channel
passenger ferry service to Belgium, with daily services to Ostend. High speed passenger services from Ramsgate
are expected to start in 2009, which will reduce the commuting time to London to just 63 minutes, which is
expected to be a major boost to the local economy.
Port Solent faces considerable issues in terms of the future expansion or reconfiguration of the marina because
of physical space limitations on the water, while land-based development is restricted by planning and
environmental constraints on the adjacent piece of land, and restricted on the marina edge by potential
conflicts with existing tenants. The development of additional berths outside the marina lock also faces
significant environmental barriers because of the need for additional dredging.
4.8.2
Facilities
The Royal Harbour Marina currently comprises 700 berths located in the inner and outer harbour, and includes
100 dedicated visitor berths. It also owns around 50 chain moorings that are let out to a small boating
organisation. The marina operation owns and provides a range of facilities and services available on site,
including berths, moorings, slipways, fuel, utilities, 40 tonne boat hoist and maintenance services, pump-out
facilities, security, car parking and a modern amenity block providing free showers, toilets and launderette
facilities.
There are approximately 30 on-site tenant businesses that provide additional services including a chandlery,
marine engineering, boat repair and maintenance, charters and sea schools, brokerage and dealerships,
restaurants and a café. There is also significant commercial fishing activity in the harbour, and a company that
provides pilot boarding services for the Ports of London and Medway, Estuary Services Limited.
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4.8.3
4.8.4
Demand for Marina Berths
It has not been possible to separate the marina costs from the overall harbour costs. However the total amount
spent on wages to marina staff can be used to estimate value added as there is no ‘profit’ generated by the
marina. This suggests that the value added generated by the marina business is £450,000.
The marina and the tenant businesses have noticed trends towards larger boats and motor boats, although
those consulted expect some change with the impending loss of the derogation on red diesel.
The value added for the marina tenants has been estimated using a ratio of £0.50 per £1 output, giving a total
GVA of tenant businesses as £3,600,000.
Barriers and Constraints
The marina would like to increase the number of berths available for visitors, given their benefit to the local
economy, however, any expansion in the number of marina berths would also require increased breakwater
investment and therefore involve high development costs.
Boats and Visitors
A key function of the marina is to attract visiting boats to contribute to the economic regeneration of the town
by bringing in high-value visitors who spend money on local goods and services. A significant number of
boating visitors to Ramsgate marina come from outside the UK (35%), mainly from Holland, Belgium and
Germany. As with other marinas on the south coast, French boaters tend not to visit given the high fees
relative to French marinas. However, Ramsgate and other marinas in the south east have, in partnership with
French marinas, been awarded an Interreg IIIA EEC grant to establish joint working partnerships. This initiative
is expected to further strengthen the links between British and French marina operators within the Nord Pas de
Calais region and provide improved leisure boating services.
The marina estimates that it has 3,000 visitor boat nights each month for July and August and around half this
figure for the months of April, May, June and September. The estimates suggest a total number of visitor boat
nights of 10,500 per annum. The Ramsgate Marina visitor survey (2000) found the average number of people
on board visiting boats to be 2.7, which can be used to provide an estimate of 28,350 visitor nights per annum.
The marina manager estimates that there are around 100+ non-boating leisure visitors to the marina each day
during the peak season as the marina is part of the town centre and there are a lot of people passing through
and going for a walk along the seafront.
Some tenant businesses reported that there appears to be a fall of in demand for their services this year,
especially compared to 2005. One of the reasons for this is believed to be a drop in the number of foreign
visitors, especially those with large boats, as a result of the cheaper facilities on the other side of the English
Channel being further exacerbated by the continuing strength of Sterling compared to the Euro.
4.8.6
Employment
The marina site provides work for an estimated 121 FTE employees in total, including 31 employed by the core
marina business. The core marina business includes 2 part-time members of staff and 6 temporary employees
taken on in the summer mainly to deal with visitors and fuel sales.
There are also 5 local contractor businesses that are licensed to work on-site at the marina, generating further
income for the local economy. It is believed that a number of unlicensed contractors also work on-site and
some tenant businesses reported finding it difficult to compete with these sole traders.
4.8.7
Value Added
Approximately 430 of the 700 berths are currently occupied, leaving 170 vacant berths (excluding the 100
dedicated visitor berths). This is a relatively high number of vacant berths compared to the other case study
marinas. There is no current waiting list, but it does occasionally have one for boats in excess of 14 metres.
The Royal Harbour is a listed structure so the development of the marina is constrained in terms of the type of
development that it can pursue.
4.8.5
4.8.8
Financial Information
4.8.9
Expenditures in the Wider Economy
The close proximity of the marina to the town centre means that a significant amount of boating visitor
expenditure is likely to be generated in the town. The Ramsgate Marina visitor survey also collected
information on visitor expenditures. The findings suggest an average expenditure of around £50 per visitor per
night. Multiplying this by the estimated number of visitors gives an estimate for visitor expenditure in the local
economy of £1.4 million per annum. This visitor expenditure is estimated to support 35 FTE tourism jobs and
£425,000 GVA in the local economy.
4.8.10 Indirect and Induced Effects
Further jobs and income are supported as a result of expenditures by suppliers (indirect effects) and employees
(induced effects). Applying the assumptions described in Section 4.2 suggests that these indirect and induced
effects support a further 36 (121x0.3) FTE jobs and £1.2 million (£4.05mx0.3) GVA in the local economy.
4.8.11 Wider Impacts
The marina forms an important part of the seafront and is quoted in tourism literature as a key reason to visit
the town. The council identifies one of the rationales for having the marina is to draw high spending visitors to
the town and this appears to be successful given the visitor expenditure data. The marina setting and the
demand it brings into the town are helping to achieve Thanet District Council’s aim of creating a vibrant
waterfront café culture.
Another benefit of the marina and the harbour is that it allows Ramsgate to stage major sailing events,
including the Heineken Race of the Classics, the Ramsgate Week Annual Regatta and the Ramsgate Power Boat
and Water-ski Racing Grand Prix. The marina manager estimated that these large scale events can draw in as
many as 40,000 visitors.
Ramsgate Marina is a key part of the regenerated waterfront and has also been identified by estate agents as a
reason behind the phenomenal growth in house prices, albeit from a relatively low base, in recent years
compared to other seaside towns in the South East. It has attracted both young families and London residents
buying up waterfront properties as second homes. In fact the latest development of waterfront flats, the Royal
Sands Development on the east side of the harbour is actually marketing its flats ’with marina moorings
available’.
Chart 4.1: Change in house prices 2001-2006, South East Coastal Towns
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
National
Regional
Eastbourne
Bognor Regis
Whitstable
Lymington
Deal
Folkestone
Hastings
0%
Margate
10%
Brighton
The turnover of tenant businesses has been estimated using an assumption of £80,000 of turnover per
employee, to give a total turnover of £7.2 million for the marina tenants. A large proportion of the turnover
from tenant businesses is likely to come from the pilot boarding firm for the Ports of London and Medway,
Estuary Services Limited (c £3 million) and the fisheries industry (c. £1 million).
20%
Ramsgate
The marina and tenant businesses have estimated their combined annual turnover to be approximately £9
million. The core marina business has an annual turnover of £1.65 million with around half of this coming from
berthing fees and half from fuel sales.
Source: www.home.co.uk.
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The council is also looking to use the harbour and the marina as a key strategic asset. The council’s corporate
plan 2007-2012 includes plans to provide improved fish landing facilities, linked to a fish market and restaurant
facilities. They are also planning a review of the strategic future of the Port of Ramsgate to achieve commercial
diversification, capital investment and maintain a strong revenue stream for the Council.
4.9.2
Facilities
Tollesbury Marina currently comprises 247 berths, of which 5 are residential berths. There are no dedicated
visitor berths and visitors instead utilise vacant berths. The marina business owns and provides almost all of the
facilities and services available on site, including a chandlery, broker, restaurant and bar, boat repair and
maintenance, and a yacht club. The boat repair and maintenance services can cater for most boats and include
full lifting facilities for boats up to 30 tonnes, as well as shore storage capacity. The repair centre, with
engineering facilities on site, provides modern and traditional repairs, re-sprays and Osmosis treatments.
4.8.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy
The tenant business, Tollesbury Marine Engineering was set up in 1998 and performs the majority of its business
for Tollesbury Marina customers. The marina has contracted out catering to a local supplier and for the purposes
of this study we have treated this business as a tenant business. There are also a number of companies located
adjacent to the marina site, whose services are utilised by the marina and marina users. These are an important
part of the economic effect of the marina and are referred to as ‘surrounding businesses’.
4.9.3 Demand for Marina Berths
Tollesbury currently has 5 vacant berths. At the start of the year there were three large boats (>12m) on the
waiting list for berths. The marina reports that they have many large boats that they are unable to
accommodate due to lack of suitable berths. There is no waiting list for shore storage.
As the waters around Tollesbury are mostly suited to sailing, motor boats account for only 13% of boats at the
marina. Tollesbury has experienced some growth in boat sizes, as a general, long-term trend.
Most of the berth–holders reside in the Chelmsford and Colchester area, although the marina does have berthholders from the wider London area and the farthest resides in Leicestershire (c.120 miles away). The wide
geographical reach is seen as being down to the value for money of the marina, especially compared to the
higher prices of marinas on the south coast.
* Excludes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina, but who come on to the site to work on the boats of Ramsgate Marina customers.
4.8.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that Ramsgate Marina supports a total of 192 FTE jobs and annual GVA of £5.7 million in
the local Kent economy. The marina at Ramsgate forms a vital part of the Ramsgate waterfront which is leading
the way for the regeneration of the town through increasing tourism, house prices and business investment.
Key to this is both the public realm value of the marina but also the number of visitors that the marina
successfully draws in. This is very much part of the council’s strategy to use the marina as a strategic asset to
attract visitors, increasing local demand and encouraging investment.
The marina itself supports a number of tenant businesses directly and the site itself provides significant
employment. The existence of the marina also helps to maintain the Historic Royal Harbour which in turn
supports other businesses, such as the fishing industry. The council has identified the marina as a key strategic
asset for economic development and this is expected to continue.
4.9
Tollesbury Marina Case Study
4.9.1
Background and History
4.9.4
Barriers and Constraints
The marina has been at its current size since 1997, and there have been no significant changes in the site since
then. The marina has not made any applications to expand but would like to have the option of doing so,
because the larger the marina, the more it can take advantage of economies of scale.
The marina faces significant barriers to development for two reasons, firstly because of the need to purchase
surrounding land and secondly the area is a SSSI because of the large saltmarsh of Blackwater Estuary.
Figure 4.10: SSSI Saltmarsh around Tollesbury Marina
Tollesbury Marina is a Four Gold Anchor marina located on the Blackwater Estuary, close to Tollesbury in Essex
and was set up in 1970. The marina has seen expansion in the number of berths in 1974, 1981 (the largest
expansion) and most recently in 1997 to its current capacity. Since then there have been no significant
developments on the site.
Figure 4.9: Aerial View of Tollesbury Marina
As part of the SSSI designation Natural England lists the ‘Operations likely to damage the special interest’,
which include ‘Modification of the structure of watercourses (e.g. rivers, streams, springs, ditches, dykes,
drains), including their banks and beds, as by re-alignment, re-grading and dredging.’
According to the marina manager, there was initially local opposition to the construction of the marina,
however over the years locals have become supportive, not least because of the number of boat owners who
now live in the local area, but also because of the key role the marina plays in the local economy.
Interest rates were also reported as an issue. Tollesbury Marine Engineering has noticed that expenditure on
boats and therefore the demand for its services is highly sensitive to interest rates. This is because the customer
base is largely made up of homeowners and expenditure on boats is marginal consumption that is relinquished
when disposable income falls.
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4.9.5
Boats and Visitors
Table 4.8: Visitor expenditure
Tollesbury Marina estimated the number of marina users in peak and off-peak seasons and has collected data
on the number of visiting boats. The marina only occasionally receives day visitors, so these have been excluded
from this analysis.
The data suggest that 236 people use or visit Tollesbury each week in peak season, and this number falls to 65
in the off season. An annual average has been estimated by assuming 30 weeks at the peak season rate and
22 weeks at the off season rate. The results are included in Table 4.7 below.
Table 4.7: Annual Estimates of Tollesbury Marina Users and Visitors
This implies that in the last year, the 355 visiting boats spent approximately £71,000 on the marina site. In
practice the income brought into the local area from visitors is likely to be much higher, given that shops selling
consumable goods are not on the marina site but are located in Tollesbury itself. To account for this
expenditure in the wider economy, the visitor estimates can be multiplied by the average spend data from
Section 3.13, which suggests visitors spend £40,000 p.a. in the local economy. This is estimated to support 1
FTE job and add value of £12,000 in the local economy.
4.9.10 Indirect and Induced Effects
The data suggest that Tollesbury Marina receives approximately 8,500 separate visits per year. The majority
(56%) are annual and seasonal berth-holders, while visitors using facilities such as the chandlery or brokerage
but who are not actively using their boat or do not keep a boat at the marina account for 21%.
Nearly all visiting boats are from the surrounding area, coming mostly from marinas at Bradwell, Crouch and
Harwich with some occasionally coming from London and to a lesser extent, Holland, Belgium and Germany.
The marina only receives occasional visitors coming northwards from the south coast.
The number of visiting boats to the marina exhibits similar monthly patterns each year with a peak in
July/August and no visiting boats over the winter. There were more visiting boats in summer 2006 than in
summer 2005, which is probably due to the better weather conditions in 2006.
4.9.6
Employment
Tollesbury Marina provides work for 14 full time equivalent (FTE) employees in total, comprising 13 full time
employees, 4 part time employees and 1 temporary employee for 9 weeks in the summer. This includes 14
people employed by the marina business, 2 people employed by the tenant business and 2 people employed by
the catering service.
There are also a number of businesses that are not based on the marina site but make use of the marina and
facilities, these include marine engineering and repair services, a sea school and retailers of sailing equipment
who use the chandlery to sell their products. GHK estimates that the marina supports the employment of 9
FTEs in surrounding businesses.
4.9.7
Tollesbury Marina estimates that £67,000 of their total expenditure on goods and services (44%) was spent on
firms in the local Essex area, including £13,000 in Tollesbury itself. Tollesbury Marine Engineering purchases
most of its goods and services outside of the local area. Expenditures by these firms and their employees, as
well as by the employees of the marina and tenant businesses, support further local incomes and employment.
It is estimated, based on the assumptions discussed in Section 4.2, that the indirect and induced effects support
a further 4 (14x0.3) FTE jobs and £143,000 (£477,000x0.3) GVA in the local economy.
4.9.11 Wider Impacts
Tollesbury marina is believed to have contributed significantly to the development of the light industrial estate
on Woodrolfe road, by stimulating an increase in local economic activity. Some of the businesses located on
the industrial estate, such as those involved in marine engineering and the manufacture of marine goods, were
developed in conjunction with the marina and would not have established here had it not been for the marina.
The value of the output of the businesses located in this industrial estate is estimated to be around £20-£30m.
In addition the marina operator sees the construction of the marina as key to socio-economic change in the
area, by attracting more affluent individuals to the area this has led to an increase in expenditure and demand
and therefore an increase in jobs. The marina owner says that this has changed Tollesbury from being a net
exporter of workers to being a net receiver of commuters.
4.9.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy
Financial Information
The total marina business has a current annual turnover of £539,000, comprising berthing fees of £315,000,
boat repairs and handling of £124,000 and commission from brokerage of £100,000. Of this, the marina
currently pays out £184,000 in wages and spends £154,000 on goods and services.
Tollesbury Marine Engineering has a turnover of £64,000 and estimates that it spends about half of this on
goods and services. The catering service is estimated to have a turnover of £120,000, and that half of this is
spent on goods and services. These figures give a total marina site turnover of £723,000.
Using the standard ratio of £80,000 of output per FTE, the marina is also estimated to support a combined
turnover of £720,000 in surrounding businesses.
4.9.8
Value Added
Subtracting the total expenditure on goods and services from the total turnover figure suggests that value
added generated by the marina business is £385,000. The value added for the marine engineering firm is
estimated to be £32,000, and £60,000 for the catering service, giving a total GVA for the marina site of
£477,000.
* Those neighbouring businesses whose demand derives partially from the marina and marina customers.
The value added for the surrounding businesses can be calculated using a ratio of £0.50 per £1 of turnover,
giving a total GVA of surrounding businesses of £360,000.
4.9.9
Expenditures in the Wider Economy
Tollesbury Marina estimates that visiting boats spend on average £200 per week on the marina site. These
different types of expenditure are presented in Table 4.8.
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4.9.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that Tollesbury marina supports a total of at least 28 FTE jobs and annual GVA of £1
million in the local Essex economy. Over time the marina appears to have been a stimulating factor in local
economy, drawing in affluent consumers and creating demand for marine-related goods and services. The
marina was also instrumental in originally providing the demand for local engineering businesses, which now
have grown and expanded into other markets.
The marina has excess demand for marina berths, however the potential for further growth by adding more
marina berths is severely restricted due to environmental constraints and land ownership issues.
4.10 Largs Yacht Haven Case Study
4.10.1 Background and History
Largs Yacht Haven is one of a number of coastal marinas on the Clyde Estuary experiencing strong growth in the
demand for marina berths. Largs opened in 1984 and has since grown to accommodate 700 berths, making it
the largest marina in Scotland and amongst the ten largest marinas in the UK. The Crown Estate owns the
riverbed and helped to finance the marina development. The site was originally an 88 acre greenfield site on the
Clyde Estuary, which was developed into a marina through reclamation and the addition of a breakwater. Largs
now comprises a marina village, with a large area available for shore storage and car parking.
The marina is 100% owned by the Yacht Havens group. The marina reported an initial struggle to fill berths
after the marina opened due to a lack of demand. However, Largs has experienced significant growth in
demand over the last 10 years, in line with the rest of the industry in the UK, and has added 80 new, larger
berths over the last four years, with further plans to add another 50 berths in 2008 to meet the continued
growth in demand. Largs has also added access bridges and created additional car parking to service the
increases in capacity.
Largs Yacht Haven has had a major impact in a very rural area, generating a significant number of new jobs,
providing public access to the waterfront, raising awareness and encouraging take-up of sailing, attracting
national and international events, all of which has encouraged increased expenditure in the area, facilitating the
creation of new businesses and growth of existing businesses, creating jobs and raising incomes in the local area.
Figure 4.11: Aerial View of Largs Yacht Haven
shower block. Largs also has 14 tenant businesses, which include charter companies, brokers, chandlers, boat
repair, electronics and engineering, rigging, sail makers, as well as a sailing club, coffee shops, bars and
restaurants, and a beauty spa. Largs Yacht Haven therefore provides a wide range of services to meet the
needs of most boaters.
4.10.3 Demand for Marina Berths
The ‘Sailing in the Clyde Estuary’ report (2006) states that more than 1,000 berths are either in planning or
development stages on the Clyde, but that this may not be sufficient to meet the growth in demand, and the
required figure could be closer to 3,000. The report also states that a conservative estimate of the value of the
marine leisure industry in Scotland would be £250 million, which almost matches the value of the national golf
industry, estimated at £300 million during the same period.
Largs currently has no vacancies and has a waiting list for marina berths of 24, which has a slightly higher
number of power boats than sail boats. The marina believes it has excess demand for marina berths for all
boat sizes above 8 metres and suggests that there would be sufficient demand to add another 500 berths.
There is also significant excess demand for shore storage and customers regularly have to wait for other boats
to launch to create space for their own boat can be lifted.
Largs is also experiencing significant growth in demand for larger boats and berths, and growth in motor boats
relative to sail. There are now more power boats (60%) than sail boats (40%) in Largs.
4.10.4 Barriers and Constraints
The development of Largs Yacht Haven has been made possible by the continued strong support of local
authorities, agencies and local residents, who recognise the significant local value added by the marina.
However the marina has had to overcome, and continues to have to overcome, some significant barriers to
development, primarily as a result of environmental restrictions.
The significant length of time and cost of undertaking environmental impact assessments is seen as a major
barrier and there is no guarantee that proposals will be approved even after that time. Obtaining a dredging
licence is also considered an overly bureaucratic process, requiring the approval and agreement of 14 different
statutory authorities every time some dredging is required. The marina managers recognise that there is a need
to ensure the environment is protected, but feel that this could be done in a more efficient way, which was less
demanding in terms time and resource.
4.10.5 Boats and Visitors
Largs Yacht Haven is a destination marina, providing a large range of services and facilities, and attracts large
numbers of boating and non-boating visitors in addition to the many berth-holders. The marina estimates that it
receives a total of 47,000 separate visits per year from boating and non-boating visitors, as presented in Table 4.9.
Table 4.9: Annual Estimates of Largs Yacht Haven Users and Visitors
4.10.2 Facilities
Largs Yacht Haven has 700 marina berths, with no moorings or dedicated visitor berths. Visitors are
accommodated in vacant marina berths when berth-holders are away from Largs. The site also has a significant
shore storage area with a capacity for 340 boats. 70% of Largs customers reside in Scotland and despite its
rural location, some 3 million people live within one and a half hours drive of the marina. The remaining 30%
of berth-holders live in England and this figure is growing as many south coast marinas are at full capacity. This
is forcing boat owners in the south of England to look further afield for berthing, and the introduction of cheap
flights has meant that keeping a boat in Largs is an increasingly viable option for many, particularly with routes
linking Glasgow Prestwick airport with London Stansted and Bournemouth.
The largest visitor group is Largs berth-holders (17,500 visits per annum), followed by non-boating leisure
visitors (14,800), overnight boating visitors (7,600), non-active boating visitors (5,000) and boating day visitors
(2,000). The marina therefore attracts almost 20,000 visits per year from people who do not have a boat
visiting or kept at the marina.
4.10.6 Employment
Largs Yacht Haven provides work for an estimated 172 full time equivalent (FTE) employees in total, including
17 employed by the core marina business, as well as all on-site tenant businesses. There are also a significant
number of contractor businesses that work on-site at Largs Yacht Haven, generating further income for these
contractors and the local economy.
Largs Yacht Haven operates a broad range of services and facilities, including berthing and storage, access to
the water, the boat hoist and crane, fuel, utilities, pump-out facilities, car parking, launderette, toilet and
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4.10.7 Financial Information
4.10.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy
The total turnover of the Largs Yacht Haven site is estimated to be in the region of £16 million, based on
discussions with the marina manager and tenant businesses and then scaling the figures up based on estimates
of turnover per employee. It has not been possible to provide a detailed breakdown of the different income
streams due to the large number of tenant businesses on site. However, the largest sources of income are likely
to be boatyard services, berthing fees and leisure facilities.
Table 4.10: Main Sources of Turnover for the Core Marina Business at Largs Yacht Haven
Table 4.10 shows that the total turnover of the core marina business is approximately £2 million per annum,
while most income is generated from berthing fees.
4.10.8 Value Added
The core marina business spends just over 10% of turnover on the purchase of goods and services. However,
this is likely to be much higher for many of the tenant businesses, so it has been assumed that 35% of total
site turnover is spent on purchased goods and services (£5.6 million per annum), which suggests the value
added by the marina is £10.4 million per annum.
4.10.9 Expenditures in the Wider Economy
The town of Largs is an approximate 20 minute walk from the marina and there are lots of retail and leisure
opportunities for visitors within a five mile radius of the marina. The marina estimates that an average of 50%
of visiting boaters will leave the marina site during their visit and head into town, which equates to 3,800
overnight visitors and 1,000 day visitors per annum. To account for this expenditure in the wider economy,
these visitor estimates can be multiplied by the average spend data from Section 3.13. This suggests that
visiting boaters spend £200,000 in the local economy but away from the marina site, which is estimated to
support approximately 5 local tourism jobs and add value of £60,000 to the local economy.
4.10.10 Indirect and Induced Effects
It is estimated that 33% of the value of goods and services purchased by the marina and tenant businesses is
from companies in the local Ayrshire economy, directly boosting their turnover by £1.9 million. Expenditures by
these firms and their employees, as well as by the employees of the marina and tenant businesses, generate
indirect and induced effects that are estimated to support a further 52 (172x0.3) FTE jobs and £3.1m
(£10.4mx0.3) GVA in the local economy, using the assumptions specified in Section 4.2.
4.10.11 Wider Impacts
Largs Yacht Haven has a strong relationship with local authorities and agencies in the local area. These key
stakeholders and the residents of Largs town are supportive of the marina and recognise the significant
economic value it adds to the local economy and equally significant social value by providing leisure amenities
to local residents as well as visiting boaters.
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* Excludes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina, but who come on to the site to work on the boats of Largs Yacht Haven customers.
4.10.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that Largs Yacht Haven supports 229 full time equivalent jobs and annual GVA of £13.6
million in the local economy. This represents a significant impact in a relatively rural area. As well as creating
jobs and adding value for local businesses and the local economy, Largs Yacht Haven adds further value which
is often unquantifiable and includes:
•
Raising awareness and the image and profile of the local area
•
Increasing the local leisure offer for local residents as well as visiting boaters
•
Providing public access to the waterfront
•
Providing new customer markets for local businesses – e.g. a local upholstery business has experienced
significant growth as a result of the development of Largs Yacht Haven and now concentrates most of its
time supplying services to berth-holders.
4.11 Conwy Quays Marina Case Study
4.11.1 Background and History
Conwy Marina is a five gold anchor marina, located on the Conwy Estuary in North Wales. It opened in 1992
following a joint venture development between The Crown Estate Commissioners and Pearce Developments
Ltd. The marina was constructed within the A55 road tunnel casting basin, and the close proximity of the A55
provides excellent road links along the North Wales coast and into the North West and Midlands of England,
providing a significant catchment area for potential customers.
Figure 4.12: Aerial View of Conwy Quays Marina
65
Quay Marinas purchased the site from Crest Nicholson as part of the management buyout in 2004 and it
became known as Conwy Quays Marina. Conwy has a large berthing capacity and was the largest marina in
Wales until earlier in 2007, when a development at Swansea marina took its capacity slightly above that of
Conwy. Conwy marina has a tidal sill to maintain depths within the marina basin at low tides. There is better
than half tide access to the marina but outside these times, boats waiting to enter or exit the marina can moor
on purpose built pontoons just outside the gate entrance.
Table 4.11: Main Sources of Turnover for Conwy
4.11.2 Facilities
Conwy Quays Marina has 500 marina berths, with no moorings or dedicated visitor berths, although visitors are
accommodated in vacant marina berths. The Conwy site also provides a shore storage facility with a capacity
for 120 boats. Only a minority of Conwy berth-holders reside in Wales and the majority of customers live in
Liverpool, Manchester, Cheshire or Birmingham. The marina therefore plays a significant role in attracting
expenditures into the local economy.
Conwy Quays Marina owns and operates a range of services and facilities, including berthing and storage,
access to the water, boat hoist and crane, fuel, utilities, pump-out facilities, car parking, launderette, toilets and
shower block. The marina also has 6 tenant businesses on site, which include boatyard facilities, marine
engineering, a chandlery, brokerage and a sea school. Three of these businesses are owned by a single
company. There is also a pub/restaurant based on site, but this is operated by a third party rather than a tenant
business.
Conwy Marina is on land owned by The Crown Estate and the rent for last year was £157,000 per annum.
Conwy Marina also paid £214,000 in wages to marina staff and £363,000 on the purchase of goods and services.
It is estimated that the marina generates 6 FTE jobs in contractor businesses, since this is the estimated average
number of contractors on site at any one time. Assuming an average turnover of £80,000 per FTE job suggests
that contractor turnover relating to Conwy customers totals £480,000.
4.11.8 Value Added
It has been assumed that 35% of the total site turnover is spent on purchased goods and services (£1.8 million
per annum), which enables the value added by the marina to be estimated at £3.3 million per annum.
For the contractors it is assumed that each £1 of turnover comprises £0.50 of GVA, suggesting that contractor
GVA as a result of Conwy Marina totals £240,000.
4.11.3 Demand for Marina Berths
The marina currently has 25 vacant berths, but also has excess demand for berths between 10 and 12 metres.
Conwy has a waiting list of 20 boats, split evenly between sail and power boats, for berths of this size. The vacant
berths are usually smaller than 10 metres or larger than 12 metres. Conwy has no waiting list for shore storage.
4.11.4 Barriers and Constraints
Conwy Quays Marina faces the same issues as the other case study marinas with regard to gaining consent to
undertake dredging in and around the marina. The marina would also like to increase its car parking capacity,
but faces planning restrictions on expanding the site. The landscape screening around parts of the marina is
very thick in places and the marina would like to cut it back to gain additional hard storage areas for car
parking (and shore storage in winter). However, there are likely to be barriers to this because part of the
marina falls within a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
4.11.5 Boats and Visitors
Conwy Quays Marina has a large number of berth-holders, but receives a relatively small number of visiting
boats compared to the other case study marinas. Boating visitors to Conwy are thought to be spread relatively
evenly between those coming from elsewhere on the North Wales coast, from North West England, Scotland
and Ireland. The marina estimates that it receives almost 9,000 visits from berth-holders each year (which
includes multiple visits from the same berth-holders), while visiting boaters are estimated to total 600 (all of
whom stay overnight). It has not been possible to collect estimates of non-boating leisure visitors, although the
Mulberry pub/restaurant does attract a large number of non-boating visitors to the site and is very busy at
weekends. The Manager of the Mulberry suggested that customers are split evenly between boating customers
and local Conwy residents.
4.11.6 Employment
Conwy Quays provides work for an estimated 48 FTE employees in total, including 9 employed by the core
marina business, and 39 employed by the on-site tenant and third party businesses. There are also
approximately 12 local contractor businesses that regularly work on-site at the marina, generating further
income for these contractors and the local economy. The marina suggests that an average of 6 contractor
employees work on the Conwy site at any one time.
4.11.9 Expenditures in the Wider Economy
Conwy town centre is about a mile from the marina, containing a supermarket and a range of shops, pubs and
restaurants. Assuming that 50% of visiting boaters will leave the marina site and head into town suggests 290
overnight visitors per annum. To account for this expenditure in the wider economy, these visitor estimates can
be multiplied by the average spend data of £50 per night per visitor. This suggests that visiting boaters spend
£14,500 in the local economy but away from the marina site, which supports approximately 0.4 local tourism
jobs and £4,350 GVA.
4.11.10 Indirect and Induced Effects
Approximately 33% of the value of goods and services purchased by the marina, tenant and third party
businesses is estimated to be from companies in the local North Wales economy, directly boosting the turnover
of these businesses by £590,000. Expenditures by these firms and their employees, as well as by the employees
of the marina and tenant businesses, support further local incomes and employment. It is estimated, based on
the assumptions discussed in Section 4.2, that these indirect and induced effects support a further 16 (54x0.3)
FTE jobs and £1.05m (£3.5mx0.3) GVA in the local economy.
4.11.11 Wider Impacts
Conwy County Borough Council believe the marina has played a significant role in the regeneration of Conwy
by helping to raise the image and attractiveness of Conwy, creating confidence in the local area, and
encouraging other businesses to raise the quality of the local retail and leisure offer to the visitors that the
marina attracts to the area. The value of property beside the marina is reported to command a premium of
between 10% and 15% over similar properties elsewhere in the local area.
The marina has also helped to create a range of different jobs, including a number of high value jobs in
specialist marine and engineering skills. The development of the marine sector is a priority for Conwy and is
mentioned in the local regeneration strategy, which mentions the need to develop Conwy’s image as a centre
for watersports, marine engineering, and berthing. The marine sector is locally important given the strong links
to tourism, and the potential for growth in high value sub-sectors.
4.11.7 Financial Information
The marina, tenant and third party businesses have estimated their combined annual turnover to be
approximately £5.1 million. The core marina business has an annual turnover of £1.4 million, with the majority
of income received as berthing fees.
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67
4.11.12 Summary of Impacts on Local Economy
Table 4.12 – Headline Summary of Economic Impacts (Employment and GVA)
* Includes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina, but who come on to the site to work on the boats of Conwy Quay Marina customers.
4.11.13 Conclusions
This analysis suggests that Conwy Quays Marina supports 70 full time equivalent jobs and annual GVA of £4.6
million in the local economy. The marina is highly dependent upon permanent berth-holders to add value for
the marina and the local economy, and the number of visiting boats is relatively low. There would appear to be
scope for the marina to attract more visiting boaters, particularly given the low number of vacant berths and
the large catchment area of berth-holders, which both suggest that this marina is a popular location for
customers wanting a marina berth. However any future developments at the marina are likely to face
considerable barriers, given the SSSI and AONB status of much of the land surrounding the marina site.
4.12 Summary of Case Study Findings
A summary of the key data from the above analysis is included in Table 4.12 below and included in Table 4.13
for all case study marinas. The analysis suggests that these nine case study marinas directly employ a total of
129 FTE staff, and add value of £10.4 million, through their core marina businesses. The core marina business
at Port Solent has the most significant direct impact, driven by the large capacity for dry storage and rental
incomes from a large number of on-site tenants, which supplement the berthing fees. The core marina
businesses are very productive in terms of GVA per head, which averages £80,000 per FTE.
The overall impact, in terms of direct, indirect, and induced effects, suggests that these case study marinas
support a total of 1,700 FTE jobs, and GVA of £76 71 million. The largest area of impact overall, and for all
except one marina, is the impact of on-site tenant businesses. These tenant business account for 53% of the
overall impact of marinas in terms of jobs supported, and 5655% of the overall GVA. The marinas with the
largest overall impact are Jersey, Port Solent, and Largs and Jersey, i.e. those marinas with the largest number of
on-site tenants. The indirect and induced effects generated by expenditures of marinas and tenant businesses
on goods and services and the expenditures of their employees in the local economy are also highest amongst
those marinas with the most significant marina and on-site businesses.
The impact of visitor expenditures on the wider economy varies significantly between marinas, and is naturally
closely related to the number of visiting boaters. These impacts are therefore highest amongst the most
popular visitor marinas (Port Hamble Jersey, Ramsgate and East Cowes).
In conclusion, the size and scale of the economic impacts of coastal marinas is closely related to the range of
on-site facilities and services provided by the marina and tenant businesses, the number of marina berths, the
number of visiting boaters, and the opportunities for berth-holders and visitors to spend money both on-site
and in the local economy.
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69
Table 4.13 – Summary of Economic Impacts of All Case Study Marinas
^ Lower estimate
* Excludes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina
** Includes purchases of goods and services from contractors not based at the marina
5
CONCLUSIONS
5.1
Introduction
This report provides an assessment of the economic benefits of the coastal marinas sector in the UK and the
Channel Islands, which has included:
•
a national assessment of the sector based on secondary data, a new survey of TYHA members and
consultations with industry representatives.
•
a series of nine case studies to supplement existing information with further primary research at the local
level.
This information has been used to evidence the current scale and economic significance of the coastal marinas
sector. This includes its interactions with other marina leisure sub-sectors and the tourism industry to
demonstrate the economic benefits, and barriers to the development, of coastal marinas in the UK.
5.2
Economic Benefits of Coastal Marinas
5.2.1
Direct Impacts of Coastal Marinas
The core UK coastal marinas sector (excluding boatyard and hospitality services) generates an annual turnover
of £113 million and directly employs approximately 1,700 FTE staff. The assessment of economic benefits
indicates that the added value of the sector is £69 million. This is higher than the contribution of motorcycle
and bicycle manufacturing (£68 million), and fish and seafood retailing (£65 million) in the UK.
The coastal marinas sector also provides high value employment with an average GVA per employee of
£41,200. This is significantly higher than the UK average and is higher than many high value service and
manufacturing sectors. Many of the case study marinas are relatively large marinas, which benefit from
economies of scale, thereby requiring fewer employees relative to the number of berths. These case studies
suggest GVA per employee could be even higher, at around £80,000.
Additional income streams of marina operators, such as associated marine and hospitality activities, are
estimated to support a further 600 local jobs and £7 million of value added. Although these services appear
less productive, it is important to consider these revenue streams alongside the core marina business. This is
because the provision of additional services improves the offer of the marina, attracting more customers and
increasing demand for marina berths.
The core marina business at Port Solent was found to have the most significant direct impact of all case study
marinas. Berthing fees at Port Solent are supplemented by considerable additional income from fees for dry
storage and rental income from tenant businesses.
5.2.2
On–Site Businesses
The output and employment of tenant businesses is supported by the expenditure of marina berth-holders and
visitors. These tenants can be marine related, such as chandlers, boat repair and maintenance specialists, fuel
providers or charter companies, or non-marine businesses providing accommodation or food and drink for
example. This was found to be the most significant area of impact of coastal marinas, representing more than
half of the overall employment and GVA impacts. Tenant businesses are estimated to directly support 11,800
jobs and generate £260 million of value added, based on the case study findings.
The case studies also examined the impacts of non-tenant businesses based on marina sites. These include
contractors coming on to the marina site as well as other non-tenant businesses such as Hamble Yacht Services,
adjoining Port Hamble Marina, and the Boardwalk Centre at Port Solent. Coastal marinas in the UK are
estimated to support more than 1,000 jobs and £16.5 million of GVA in non-tenant businesses.
5.2.3
Supply Chain and Employee Effects
Expenditures by marina operators, tenant businesses and their employees benefit local economies through
indirect and induced effects, which support further local incomes and employment. The case study marinas
suggest that these effects support an additional 4,300 jobs and £102 million of value added in local economies.
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5.2.4
Tourism and Leisure Impacts
East (£171 million) and South West (£89 million) regions. However, in terms of its overall impact on regional
GVA, the coastal marinas sector is most significant in the Channel Islands, while the South West, South East,
Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland, the East of England and the Isle of Man also have a higher than average
contribution.
The coastal marina sector is closely related to the wider tourism and leisure industry by:
•
Providing infrastructure and services for people to access the water and participate in leisure boating activities.
•
Serving as visitor attractions in their own right, attracting boating and non-boating users, who spend money
on-site and in the wider local economy.
Table 5.1: Coastal Marinas GVA and Proportion of Total Regional GVA
Coastal marinas are an important contributor to tourism through associated spend and employment and
boating visitors to coastal marinas are estimated to spend £214 million per annum, supporting an estimated
5,350 tourism jobs in local economies around the UK, based on the case study findings and an analysis of
evidence from expenditure surveys. However, this total excludes the expenditure of non-boating leisure visitors.
5.2.5
Regeneration and Property Effects
Coastal marinas have the potential to play a significant role in the regeneration of local economies by:
•
Encouraging a variety of visitors to come and spend money in the local economy.
•
Generating new jobs, including some high value and highly skilled employment.
•
Facilitating business growth and the creation of new businesses within the marina supply chain, thereby
raising GVA in the local area.
•
Providing high quality leisure facilities for local residents and visiting boaters.
•
Raising awareness of the local area and driving up the quality of the local leisure offer.
•
Creating demand for local residential and commercial property, thereby raising property values, which are
likely to command a premium of at least 10-15%.
•
5.2.6
Source: GHK calculations using 2005 ONS data for Headline GVA at current basic prices by region
5.3
The growth of the coastal marinas sector is benefiting from continued strong growth in demand for boats and
marina berths, and particularly for larger boat sizes and motor boats. The key drivers of this are:
Coastal marinas have an important influence on the functioning and performance of all other sub-sectors of the
wider marine leisure industry. The key linkages include:
5.2.7
•
An increasingly ageing and affluent population bringing new entrants to the market.
•
The increasing affordability of new and used boats, particularly in relation to the cost of second homes,
opening the sector up to a larger customer base.
•
An increasing demand for the convenience of marina berths, rather than moorings, to maximise boating
time. Convenience is also a key reason for the growth in motor boating, which has lower physical and time
demands than sailing.
•
The increasing quality of coastal marinas, highlighted by the growing number with TYHA Gold Anchor
Award accreditation.
Improving the image, appearance and attractiveness of the local area.
Marine Sector Impacts
•
Industry Trends
Marinas act as a key driver for domestic boat sales, through the provision of marina berths and moorings.
A lack of available marina berths is likely to restrict the sale of new boats, which inevitably constrains the
production, supply chain and distribution activities relating to new boats, a total industry which is estimated
to generate added value of £481 million per annum.16
•
Marinas also facilitate the sale of new and used boats by providing a marina location from which brokers can
access potential customers and suppliers of used boats, as well as showcase the boats they have for sale.
•
Coastal marinas have a very strong link to boatyard services and the majority of marinas provide boatyard
services, either themselves and/or more typically, via tenant businesses and contractors. Marinas provide
these businesses with a significant customer base of berth-holders and visiting boaters.
•
Charter and sea school services require access to water and somewhere to berth a fleet of charter, hire or
training boats and marinas therefore provide the most appropriate location.
Overall Impacts
The case study marinas each support local employment of between 28 and 498 FTE jobs and value added of
between £1 million and £17.4 million per annum. Port Solent has the most significant overall impact in terms
of employment and GVA.
The analysis of the nine case study marinas suggests that the overall impact of coastal marinas is many times
larger than the direct impacts of the core sector. Every job in the core coastal marinas sector supports a further
12 jobs in the local economy, through tenant businesses, suppliers and as a result of visitor and employee
expenditures in the wider economy. This suggests that coastal marinas support around 22,000 FTE jobs in local
coastal economies across the UK and Channel Islands.
Furthermore, the overall impact of coastal marinas on GVA is estimated to be seven times larger than that of
the core coastal marinas sector. This suggests that coastal marinas support around £500 million of GVA in the
UK and Channel Islands. Extrapolating the case study findings suggests that this figure could even be as high
as £700 million.
Regional estimates of the overall GVA impact have been calculated based on the regional share of marina
berths and are presented in Table 5.1. This suggests that the overall impact of the sector is largest in the South
This ongoing growth in demand for marina berths, combined with a lack of new marina developments in
recent years, is reflected in the fact that the majority of marinas are currently experiencing excess demand for
berths. The excess demand and lack of available berths in many areas, particularly in the south, is forcing
people to berth their boat further from home, elsewhere in the country or overseas. This trend is being
facilitated by cheaper flights to a wider range of national and international destinations, as well as growth in
the supply of marina berths in Europe relative to the UK. This has economic implications for local economies as
it diverts expenditures and economic impacts to other regions and countries. Furthermore, the increasing air
travel also has environmental implications.
5.4
Barriers to Development
The development of new, and expansion or maintenance of existing, coastal marinas is facing an increasing
number of barriers, constraints and issues, which are restricting the supply of marina berths in the UK. Industry
representatives have suggested that the major constraints include:
•
Environmental and planning restrictions are placing greater resource requirements on marinas, restricting
their growth and productivity.
•
Physical space limitations preventing expansion of the marina on land or water.
•
The cost of infrastructure to create a marina basin can be prohibitive if local stakeholders object to other
forms of value creation as part of the development.
•
Increased costs of dredging, problems securing consent and the requirement to apply for a new licence
every time dredging is required, even if a regular annual maintenance dredge is undertaken to keep boating
channels navigable.
•
Increased health and safety legislation, which can be restrictive for marinas and boatyards.
•
The role of local authorities in decision making, particularly where multiple consents are required and consents
have already been secured from other relevant competent authorities at considerable time and expense.
16 British Marine Federation (2006) Economic Benefits of UK Leisure Boating Industry (by GHK)
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5.5
Implications for Policy
ANNEX 1: BIBLIOGRAPHY
These barriers and constraints and the related economic benefits raise a number of issues and potential
recommendations for policy makers, such as the need to:
Publications
•
5.6
Recognise the significant economic contribution of coastal marinas and associated businesses to the marine
sector, the wider local economy and tourism. Particular consideration should be given to the potential role
they can play in local regeneration and employment.
20plus30 Consulting, The Charmed Generation, December 2006
Arup, Port of Dover Economic Impact Assessment – Final Report, November 2006, report for Dover Harbour Board
BMF/MCA/RNLI/RYA sponsored by Sunsail, Watersports and Leisure Participation Survey 2006 report by Arkenford
•
Encourage and facilitate the growth of high value and high skilled marine related activities in coastal marina
locations and surrounding areas.
BMF, Spring 2007 Industry Trends Survey, 2007
•
Consider the impacts on coastal marinas, associated businesses and the local economy when introducing
new policies.
BMF, European Overview 2004 - Leisure Marine Industry at Your Fingertips, 2004
•
Reduce unnecessary bureaucracy relating to planning and environmental legislation and applications.
•
Assess the scale of local demand for marina berths and identify appropriate sites for development and
expansion, and the introduction of dry stack facilities.
•
Facilitate the development and expansion of coastal marinas and associated businesses where this is
compatible with sustainable development objectives.
BMF, Economic Benefits of the UK Leisure Boating Industry, 2006 by GHK
BMF, Marinas & Moorings National Audit 2003/04: Coastal Sectors
BMF, Planning Guide for Boating Facilities, February 2005
BMF, Planning Guide for Boating Facilities – At a Glance, April 2007
BMF, The British Marine Federation Strategic Plan 2006 – 2010, June 2006
BMF, UK Leisure Marine Industry Bulletin, 2003 – 2004, January 2004
•
Consider other forms of value creation when planning a marina development, to subsidise the infrastructure
cost, which may otherwise be prohibitive.
BMF, UK Leisure Marine Industry Bulletin, 2004 – 2005, January 2005
•
Actively promote coastal marinas as a key part of the local tourism offering.
British Waterways, Inland Waterways Day Visit Survey, 2004
Overall Conclusion
The difficulty in securing new development opportunities has been identified by this study, which lists recent
small scale developments that have been progressed over the last 5 years and highlights a lack of new large
scale prospects.
Promoting a widespread understanding of the value of marina developments to local economies and
communities has been central to the British Marine Federation’s strategy, which includes themes on encouraging
access to the water and keeping boating affordable. This report provides detailed evidence of the economic
benefits and impacts of coastal marinas, which will be of considerable interest to planners and decision makers,
as well as those considering investing in the marina sector within the UK and the Channel Islands.
BMF, UK Leisure and Small Commercial Marine Industry: Key Performance Indicators, 2005/06, January 2007
Countryside Agency, Countryside Council for Wales, British Waterways, Department for Culture, Media and Sport,
Environment Agency, Forestry Commission, Scottish Natural Heritage, Visit Britain, Visit Scotland and Wales Tourist
Board, Great Britain Day Visits Survey, 2002/3, 2003
Economic Research Associates, East of Albert Development Plan – Draft Master Plan Report: Stage 1 – Pre Feasibility,
November 2006
Economic Research Associates, East of Albert Study: Market Review and Concept Recommendation (Draft), October 2006
Economic Research Associates, East of Albert Study: Workshop 2, September 2006
Fischer Associates, Marine NW Strategy Final Report, July 2003
Fischer Associates, Sail NW Action Plan. Sponsored by North West Development Agency. April 2004
Halcrow, Harrington Harbour Regeneration Study, May 2006
Jersey Statistics Unit, The Marine Industry in Jersey’s Economy, 2003
Jersey Tourism, Survey of Yacht Visitors to Jersey, 2003
L & R Consulting Solutions Ltd, ‘Catching The Wave’ A Watersports Tourism Strategy For Wales, Final Report To Wales
Tourist Board, August 2003
Marine South East, Economic Impact of the Marine Industries Within South East England, 2005
McKenzie Wilson, Sailing in the Clyde Estuary: The Potential for Future Development, June 2006, report for Scottish
Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise
Newidiem, A Marina Strategy for North West Wales, December 2002
Newidiem, An Assessment of the Economic Impact of Hafan Pwllheli Marina, March 2002
Reeds, Marina Guide: Directory of Marinas, Marine Supplies and Services, 2007
Reeds, Nautical Almanac, 2007
RYA, Marina Guide: UK Coastal and Inland Waters, 2006
States of Jersey, A Review of the Jersey Economy: A Report by the Economic Adviser, December 2006
The Market Specialists, Economic Impact Study of Sea-Based Events in Ayrshire, December 2003
The Yacht Harbour Association, A Code of Practice for the Design, Construction and Operation of Coastal and Inland
Marinas and Yacht Harbours, 2007
The Yacht Harbour Association, Fore & Aft: The Magazine of the Yacht Harbour Association, March 2007
The Yacht Harbour Association, Marinas, Moorings, Boatyards, Consultants, Equipment Suppliers and Services (Fourth Edition)
Tourism South East Research Unit (2004), Leisure Cruising in the South East, 2005
74
75
Tourism South East, River Hamble Visiting Yachts Survey, Final Report, Tourism South East Research Services on behalf of
River Hamble Harbour Authority & Hampshire County Council, 2003
Tourism South East Research Unit (2004), Visiting Boats Survey, Report for South East England Development Agency
(SEEDA) October 2004
University of Glamorgan, Hafan Pwllheli Economic Impact Evaluation, May 2005
Statistics and Other data
British Waterways, Inland Waterways Day Visit Survey, 2004
HM Customs and Excise UK Trade Statistics
www.marina-info.com
Office of National Statistics, Annual Business Survey
Annual Business Inquiry, ONS
UK Tourism Survey, 2003
Consultees
Howard Le Cornu, Jersey Harbours
Adam Tranter, Jersey Harbours
Myra Shacklady, Jersey Harbours
Nick Rice, Freeport Marine (Jersey)
Steve Marett, Freeport Marine (Jersey)
Sean Fellows, SouthPier Marine (Jersey)
Simon Benest, SouthPier Marine (Jersey)
Richard Gilpin, Waterfront Enterprise Board (Jersey)
Marlec Marine – Chandlery (Royal Harbour Marina, Ramsgate)
Ramsgate Marine – Marine Engineers (Royal Harbour Marina, Ramsgate)
Reimar Simmons, Ramsgate Yacht Sales (Royal Harbour Marina, Ramsgate)
Louise Bibby, Economic Development Unit, Thanet District Council
Julian Goldie, Tollesbury Marina
Tollesbury Marine Engineering (Tollesbury Marina)
Volspec Ltd (Tollesbury Marina)
Autonnic Research (Tollesbury Marina)
Gibbons Drive Systems (Tollesbury Marina)
Carolyn Elder, Largs Yacht Haven
Colin McKenzie, Saturn Sails (Largs Yacht Haven)
Kathleen Don, North Ayrshire Council
Jon Roberts, Conwy Marina
Barry Lovell, Tender Lovell Care (Conwy Marina)
John Day, Conwy School of Yachting (Conwy Marina)
Rob Woodward, Network Yacht Brokers – Brokerage, Chandlery and Marine Engineering (Conwy Marina)
Brett Hutchinson, The Mulberry (Conwy Marina)
Rob Dix, Conwy County Borough Council
John Cervenka, Premier Marinas
David Wilkie, Ardfern Yacht Centre
Carol Fulford, Marina World
Stephen Izatt, Waterfront Enterprise Board (Jersey)
Andrew Sugden, States of Jersey
Dougie Peedle, States of Jersey
Mark MacGregor, States of Jersey
Roger Graffy, Mylor Yacht Harbour
Fred Pullen, Mylor Chandlery & Rigging Ltd (Mylor Yacht Harbour)
Sandy Creedon, Seaweld Fabrications (Mylor Yacht Harbour)
Murray Smith, Ancasta International Boat Sales (Mylor Yacht Harbour)
Mike Townshend, East Cowes Marina
Richard Falk, Global Yacht Racing (East Cowes Marina)
Gordon McDonald, Rowlocks Chandlery (East Cowes Marina)
Debbie Burns, Port Hamble Marina
Malcolm Hearnden, Hamble Yacht Services (Port Hamble Marina)
Heather Broadbent, Ancasta International Boat Sales (Port Hamble Marina)
Gordon Hobson, Fairview Sailing (Port Hamble Marina)
Athena Rossi, Aladdin’s Cave Chandlers (Port Hamble Marina)
Dan Hughes, Port Solent Marina
Robin Mitchell, Marine Superstore (Port Solent Marina)
Chris Satchell, Sunsail (Port Solent Marina)
Alexandra Thomas, Boardwalk Centre Management (Port Solent Marina)
Russell Hayden, Abersoch Land and Sea (Port Solent Marina)
Clare Seek, Portsmouth City Council
Dominic Evans, Royal Harbour Marina, Ramsgate
76
77
NOTES
78
NOTES
79
FURTHER INFORMATION
If you have any further questions
regarding this project, please contact:
British Marine Federation
Marine House
Thorpe Lea Road
Egham
Surrey
TW20 8BF
t: +44 (0) 1784 47 33 77
f: +44 (0) 1784 43 96 78
e: research@britishmarine.co.uk
£300
Copyright British Marine Federation 2007
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without the prior written consent of British Marine Federation.
Published September 2007. Recyclable. Printed on elemental, chlorine free paper from sustainable forests.
More information @ www.britishmarine.co.uk